All of the Wrong Moments
by guilty puhLALALAleasures
Summary: When Kirishima is called away on business for a few days, things seem to be well enough as Yokozawa and Hiyori look forward to a weekend with just them two, but a fight between Kirishima and Yokozawa leave them on bitter terms before the trip; to top it all off, Kirishima and Yokozawa's relationship is finally revealed to Hiyori, who doesn't take it as well as they had hoped.
1. The Wrong Idea

"So what's been going on with you lately?"

"Hm… Nothing new. School's the same, but-Oh! Right! Grandma and Grandpa are coming back this Sunday!"

"Ah, has it been a month already?"

"Yep! I can't wait to see what they bring back! They always choose the best souvenirs!"

"Soon enough you won't have to worry about rushing over here, isn't that right Yokozawa?"

"Well it's not like I won't end up back here most of the time anyway…" Yokozawa muttered; he wasn't in a bitter mood, rather Yokozawa didn't appreciate Kirishima trying to get a rise out of him by having him get flustered and come back with a line like, _"B-But I like coming over!"_

Like every day for the past month, Yokozawa sat seated for dinner at the Kirishima's. It's not like this was uncommon behavior though; Yokozawa was a frequent guest who even spent weekends there. Be it as it may, during the last month, he had found himself rushing to get to the Kirishima apartment as early as possible. He usually visited at his own leisure or waited for Kirishima to get off of work.

With Kirishima's parents overseas, Hiyori was doomed to be left alone for long stretches of time during Kirishima's busiest days. However, it was no surprise when Yokozawa took it upon himself to get to work in the mere hours of the morning and finish early just so the young girl wouldn't have to be alone all of that time. She had originally protested needing a babysitter, but Hiyori later found herself enjoying the quality time with Yokozawa. In turn, him coming a few hours earlier than expect him led Yokozawa to spending more time at the Kirishima's than usual, and he could swear that by now he was there more than his own apartment.

Since he was bound to spend so much time at their place, Kirishima had suggested that Yokozawa just move in for the month. The proposition was denied however, as Yokozawa saw the notion as unnecessary. Even so, there were some days when Hiyori would innocently asked him to spend the night, and he just couldn't deny her _every_ time she asked.

"Even if you'll still come over all the time, it'll still feel weird," Hiyori admitted with just an inkling of disappointment in her voice. "I got so used to you being home just when I was, so it might feel a bit lonely from now on."

"N-Not really… Are you forgetting that your grandmother is coming back? She'll be able to keep you company until your father comes home."

"Eeh? It's not the same though," Hiyori insisted. "I'll really mi-"

The ringing of a cellphone cut her off before she could finish, and the three looked at each other before Kirishima realized it was his and hesitantly took out his phone.

"Ah, that's mine. Sorry, must've forgotten to put it on vibrate. I'll just turn it off and-Oh?" Kirishima took a look at the caller on his screen and decided to answer. He stood up and began to walk out to the balcony, an expression of apology on his face and a finger indicating that he'd be just a minute.

"I guess work calls," Yokozawa offered to Hiyori, who looked somewhat confused at the intrusion.

"Usually they don't disturb him this late though," she noted.

It was true; Kirishima liked to set a clear line between work and private life, and his subordinates at this point understood this, so it must have been someone important that Kirishima couldn't ignore. At least it didn't sound like Hiyori minded the interruption, Yokozawa reasoned.

"Anyway Oniichan, I was hoping that once Grandma and Grandpa get home, you'd help me cook a big feast for them!"

"Ah, that shouldn't be a problem."

"I really want them to have something special, because it's probably been a really long time since they've had a nice home cooked meal."

"Well if it's cooked by you, I'm sure they'll love it," he assured her. "What do you have in mind?"

"Hm… I don't know yet, but I wanted to try some new recipes, which is why I need your help," explained Hiyori. "How about we each choose a main dish? And then cook them both! It's a feast after all! Oh, and Father can suggest something too!"

The sound of the balcony door opening made the two turn their heads to Kirishima, who welcomed himself back in with a look of irritation on his face. He scratched the back of his head and bitterly sat down.

"What's wrong?" inquired Hiyori.

"Ah, it turns out Shizuku got sick, so they're asking me to fill in for him."

Yokozawa noticed the tilt of Hiyori's head. "He's another editor in your father's division," he informed the confused youngster as he turned to Kirishima. "What the hell? Isn't he supposed to be in charge of Ijuuin-Sensei's meet-and-greet tour tomorrow?" Originally, Yokozawa was supposed to be the sales representative in charge of this event, but knowing that Kirishima's parents would be away at the time, he had passed the job onto Henmi just in case Kirishima needed him to watch Hiyori. "They can't expect you to haul your ass all the way to Sapporo by tomorrow, do they?"

Kirishima sighed. "I tried to get out of it, but my boss just wouldn't give in. He said that if I leave early enough tomorrow, I could get to the office and pick up the materials we need, and probably make it in time for the event if I took a bullet train."

"That's just downright preposterous," Yokozawa said disbelievingly. Though a stretch, it was true that Kirishima could probably make it on time; that still didn't excuse the fact that this was such a tall favor to ask in such short notice though.

"Yeah, it is," Kirishima echoed annoyingly as he rested his chin on his palm. "But apparently Kyo-san said he wouldn't do this event without someone who's been his editor, so it's either me or no event."

The man probably just wanted to make sure that he was familiar with the guy running his event. While Japun had all of its editors collectively work on every manga that the magazine serialized, there was always a specific editor assigned to the authors and were the ones who met and discussed things with them in person. The only two editors that have ever been put specifically in charge of Ijuuin-Sensei's works are Shizuku and Kirishima himself.

Yokozawa was about to argue, but ultimately Kirishima had been pushed into a corner; the cancellation of a top-selling author's meet and greet would probably not only have its own backlash in sales, but the company's reputation itself. In Yokozawa's opinion, however, it wouldn't hurt to postpone one day, but he was most definitely biased in keeping in mind Kirishima's good health.

"Ah, so then Father won't be here this weekend?" In the midst of a work-related discussion, the two had forgotten that Hiyori was present. She was currently giving her father a blank stare. "Does that mean I'll be here alone overnight?"

"Hm? Of course not. Tomorrow's a Friday, so Yokozawa'll be here like always."

"Wh-What?!" Yokozawa choked on the tea he was sipping down, aghast at the casualness in Kirishima's voice.

Kirishima looked at him apathetically. "It's the weekend," he reasoned, "you always come over!"

Hiyori brightened up. "Really? That's great! Without Father, it's kind of like a sleepover, don't you think?"

"Isn't it always a sleepover?" teased Kirishima, who chose to ignore Yokozawa's paling face.

Yokozawa balked at the two rejoicing, as he couldn't help but feel a pit in his stomach at Hiyori's innocent words. It was nice that she tended to think of him as one of her friends, but this was going a bit too far. What would the neighbors think, seeing a grown man like him sleeping in an apartment alone with a child? Although he was already known as a "close friend" of Kirishima's, wouldn't people be suspicious about him sleeping over without the master of the house? Not to mention, the notion was just morally wrong.

He couldn't help but frown disbelievingly in Kirishima's direction, paled with anxiety about how to go about things with Hiyori around, but he soon felt his draining blood rise back to a boil when Kirishima shrugged him off. He briefly rubbed the bridge of his nose before composing himself and requesting, "Hiyo, can I speak to your father alone for a second?" He didn't feel too bad about sending her away from the dinner table, as they were just about done eating anyway.

Hiyori's blithe demeanor suddenly turned dubious. "But the dishes…"

"Don't worry, we'll take care of them." Yokozawa frowned when she looked away and tried to encourage her with a smile. "You have school tomorrow anyway. You should finish up your homework so that you can get a good night's sleep."

Hiyori returned the grin, albeit hesitantly, and nodded. "M'kay... Thanks for helping with dinner, Oniichan," she remarked as she took sweet her time in leaving the room. Perhaps she was waiting to be told to stay, but that just didn't happen.

While Yokozawa was watching her leave, Kirishima's eyes stayed glued to him with an undecipherable emotion. When Yokozawa finally turned to him, his expression had turned to one of sarcastic shock. "What's wrong?" he asked, feigning his ignorance.

"Don't give me that crap," Yokozawa muttered harshly, being sure to check his volume just in case Hiyori was still lingering about. "How can you expect me to watch a prepubescent girl alone?!"

"What're you talking about? You watch her for me all the time," Kirishima sighed out as he waved the air with the flick of his wrist, clearly not taking Yokozawa's words seriously.

"But sleep _over_ here?!"

"You do that too! I don't see why you're so worked up over this!"

"That's different though! You're always here when I sleep over!" It would be one thing if Hiyori was a niece of his, but they had no familial relationship whatsoever. "It's not good for me to be sleeping here alone with a girl for a whole weekend! It'd be one thing if your parents were coming back late tomorrow and I'd just have to wait for them to come on over, but they're coming back _Sunday_!" Rude as it may be to ask someone just returning from vacation to watch a child, it was a much better solution.

"Don't sweat the details," Kirishima tiredly brushed him aside, "Hiyori wants you over here anyway! She was beaming!"

"It's a grown man and a little girl alone! Don't you think that's pretty damn inappropriate?!"

"Well, no, because I trust you."

"E-Even so!" Yokozawa wouldn't take him missing the point any longer. "What do you think the neighbor's are gonna think about this whole thing? Can't she stay at a friend's place? Or even go with you?" he requested, exasperated.

"I can't ask anyone else to watch her at this late of a notice; it'd be too tall of a favor, especially since it's for more than just a night," explained Kirishima, finally confronting the issue at hand. "Plus, tomorrow's a Friday. And I won't be back until sometime Monday, so I'd be pulling her out for two days of school if I took her with me."

"..." Yokozawa brought a hand to his head in disbelief out of the words that were about to come out of his mouth. He sighed, looking down to the table. "So your parents are coming back Sunday, right? I only have to stay over until then?"

Kirishima grinned at having broken his lover down. He didn't miss the blush on the other's face, and while he couldn't tell why Yokozawa was so flustered, he had no complaints.

Yokozawa felt a squeeze on his free hand still splayed about the table and his head darted up in shock, the hint of his blush intensifying. "Huh?! What are you-"

"Thanks for doing this, I mean it." The word were said casually, but Kirishima's eyes had sincere gratitude in them. To ruin the moment however, Kirishima snapped his head in the other direction and called out, "Hey, Hiyori, Yokozawa said he wants to have a sleepover!"

"Really?!"

Yokozawa, uncomfortable with this display of affection, quickly snapped his hand back to under the table. However, he didn't have the time to reprimand Kirishima for grasping his hand as the sound of Hiyori's scurrying feet came to a close.

"Let's do something over the weekend too, then! We can always go somewhere fun, ah, but it's really up to you Oniichan!" she suggested, returning much more lively than she ever was this whole night.

He let his embarrassment dissipate as he lost himself in Hiyori's chatter about making plans for the weekend.

* * *

"You should really just spend the night," coaxed Kirishima as he closed Hiyori's slightly opened door where the two had just stolen a glance at her sleeping form. "You'll come back tomorrow anyway."

"Which is exactly why I have to go home today," retorted Yokozawa. "I may have clothes here, but only enough to last a day."

"Ah, I suppose so." Kirishima watched Yokozawa put on his jacket for a few seconds before initiating another conversation. "So while the tour does end on Sunday, there's undoubtedly going to be a drinking party that I'll be coerced into. Mind picking me up on Monday after work? It would be a pain to come back hung over, so you're free to use the car."

"Why should I do that?" asked Yokozawa as he buttoned up his jacket. The proposition confused him. If a hangover was his excuse, it would make more sense for Yokozawa to pick him up in the morning; by the afternoon, his grogginess should be long gone. "Wouldn't it just be more convenient to just take the train back?"

"Well yeah, it would be, but truth is, I'd like to have a little excursion with you. We've never been on a trip with just the two of us and there probably won't be many chances, so this'll do for now," Kirishima casually explained. "I should be at the same place where reception booked Kyo-san, so just pick me up there."

"Huh?" Yokozawa's eyes flickered wide for just a second before he snapped his head away and began to put on his shoes. "No way am I going to Sapporo just for a whim of yours…"

Smiling to himself, Kirishima walked up behind the unsuspecting Yokozawa. He leaned in, taking advantage of the man's diverted attention and gave him a quick peck on the cheek.

"-!" Yokozawa's head shot to the side, but before he could react, he felt a low resonance in his ear, causing him to shudder.

"See you in Sapporo," was all he said before he walked away.

Yokozawa turned around to chew out his brazen lover for doing something so daring while his daughter was present, even if she was sleeping, but decided not to make a scene so late. At least he could get a scowl in, he thought, but turning around only proved to aggravate him more as that triumphant grin shot back at him didn't seem intimidated in the least.

"Good night," Kirishima offered lowly as Yokozawa opened the door, flooding the entryway with light from the hallway.

"Tch..." Yokozawa stepped out of the apartment, but before shutting the door reciprocated the greeting with a grumbled, "G'night..."

* * *

Yokozawa brought more than just a briefcase to the office that morning. The receptionists and other coworkers he'd happen to chance upon had been asking him about the small duffel bag over his shoulder, but all he'd say was that he was watching someone's house while he was away. Someone dared to ask if it was Kirishima to which Yokozawa, in a panic, denied. _'Maybe I should've waited until after work to pack my things…'_ he considered.

But even being alone on the sales floor in the wee hours of the morning didn't stop him from being bothered.

"Hope you're not planning to burn the midnight oil before a weekend," came the cocky remark, causing Yokozawa to lift his head. Takano gave a light kick to the duffel bag which was hidden under the desk. "You're here awfully early today." At the moment, they were the only two on the floor.

"Well unlike some people, I have to work on Saturdays anyway, so it wouldn't make a difference if it's a Friday or not," shot back Yokozawa. "You're here pretty early for an editor too," he retorted as he neatly shuffled his papers and set them down, sparing himself the time for a casual conversation.

Takano sat down in the seat parked at the desk adjacent to his. He straddled the chair's spine, his chest leaning against the backing and his head resting on his arms, which were in turn on top of the rim of the chair. He spun towards Yokozawa with a sour look on his face. "Isaka-san gave us tickets to some onsen that we aren't allowed to refuse. We're stuck scrambling to get this month's issue finished before Sunday," he explained. "I hear that you've been coming in this early every day lately though. What's your excuse?"

"Oh, um…" Yokozawa fumbled with coming up with an excuse. "I've been waking up earlier lately, so I thought I might as well snap it up and get some work done. 'Us' though? Does that mean it's an Emerald-wide invitation?" he asked, attempting to shift the conversation.

"Yeah. I'm pretty sure he just wants a souvenir out of it though, so it's a pain."

"Well anything out of Isaka's mouth is a pain, but what does he think there's to gain out of an onsen trip?"

"Hell if I know," spat Takano as his muscled un-tensed. "All I know is that these hours of sleep that I don't have _now_ will go to use _there_."

That was when Yokozawa really took a good look at Takano. "Well now that you mention it, you look like crap."

"Like that's what I need to hear first thing in the morning from the guy with the worst fashion sense in the whole sales' department," replied Takano in an attempt to dispel any worry.

"Not everyone can be born with killer looks like you to make their gaudy wardrobe look princely," came the bitter come-back. "But enough of this; Have you been eating well lately?"

"Yes, yes, I've been eating just fine," Takano replied routinely. "Believe it or not, even without you around I have the common sense to cook for myself. Plus it's not just me I'm taking care of now." It's been a while since Yokozawa had doted on him, so he had completely forgotten about the man's tendency to do so.

' _Ah, he must mean Onodera…'_ Yokozawa thought to himself, mentally rolling his eyes at having to think about the guy. "Alright, when's the last time you slept?" Yokozawa brought the back of his hand to the other's forehead and continued to press on in his interrogation, ignoring the glare he got. "Are you going to finish on time? Are you sure that you can handle the workload all alone?"

"I've slept every night of the week," Takano informed him with the slightest hint of annoyance in his tone as he inched away Yokozawa's hand with his finger. "And I assure you we're all suffering at an equal pace."

"Alright, but how _many_ hours of sleep?"

"God you're a pain," muttered Takano, knowing that if he answered truthfully, Yokozawa would be all over his ass.

In all honestly, he was surprised that Yokozawa still had it in him to dote on him like this; ever since Takano had rejected him, the most motherly demand that Yokozawa would bother to give would be along the lines of, _"Just don't skip out on meals,"_ or something else generic of the sorts. "Ah, by the way, when are you free? I haven't seen my cat in ages. Now that I think about it, it's been a while since we've hung out too. Spare a few hours for a drink before I leave. It'll give us some time to catch up. You don't have any plans, do you?"

Yokozawa smiled contently at the invitation, but he had prior obligations. "Before Sunday? Ah, I-" ' _I'm actually busy this whole weekend,'_ he wanted to say, but he was cut off by an intrusive third party.

"Ah, Yokozawa! There you are!" called out Kirishima from across the room as he stormed towards the duo.

Takano turned his chair towards the voice that was much louder than it needed to be.

"K-Kirishima-san?!" Yokozawa had known that Kirishima was bound to be about the building around this time, but he hadn't noticed the man standing there. As to why he was so flustered? There was just something off about the way that Kirishima was looking at him right now...

Kirishima drew in rapidly, and while he was smiling, his eyes indicated that he felt otherwise. He was behind Yokozawa in an instant.

Yokozawa couldn't bring himself to question the man's off-kilter behavior, instead opting to inquire, "Why are you still here? Weren't you supposed to be on your way to Sapporo?"

"Yeah, well, I thought I'd drop by to say goodbye before I left; wouldn't want you missing me too badly, would ya'?" he asked as he bent over and slung an arm over Yokozawa's shoulder.

"H-Hey!" barked Yokozawa. He shoved the arm off of his shoulder, but that proved to be fruitless as he soon found the weight back on him. Yokozawa could only inch away from the face that was now nearing his own, unintentionally shooting his friend a perplexed look of irritability. Trying to quell any brewing misunderstandings, Yokozawa gave an awkward laugh and lightly pushed at Kirishima's forearm, signalling for him to let go.

Takano raised his eye at the odd interaction but chose not to confront it. "I hear that Ijuuin-Sensei has some events around Sapporo. I take it that you're in charge of that then?"

"Mm, yeah, so I should be on my way out soon," Kirishima commented playfully as he heartily waved the files in his hand. Despite speaking to Takano, his gaze didn't leave Yokozawa.

"Then quit messing around and _get going_ ," growled Yokozawa.

"Just needed to confirm a couple of things first," told Kirishima as he finally let go of Yokozawa's shoulder; nonetheless he leaned in even more, gradually expelling the distance between their already close faces. "You _will_ watch Hiyori the whole weekend, right?" The face he had challenged Yokozawa to refute.

Yokozawa in turn scowled, as it seemed more of a command than a harmless inquisition. "We've been over this already!" he snapped, leaning away as Kirishima grew closer.

"Then about the signings… Just so we're prepared to deal with whatever when I get there, have all the gifts to the attendees been shipped to one store or to the respective stores?"

"Take it up with Henmi, you know that I wasn't in charge of this," he snarled bitterly; it was a poorly disguised warning for Kirishima to take it down a notch, but the nonchalant expression on the other's face indicated that the hint was being ignored. This made Yokozawa's eyes arch in irritation.

Takano had long since caught wind of the uncomfortable atmosphere and rose an eyebrow at the unexpected display. "I'll leave you two to it then," he interrupted as he stood up to take his leave. "Some other time then, Yokozawa," he proposed with a lazy wave of his hand.

Yokozawa looked anxiously at his friend's fleeting form, then disbelievingly at Kirishima.

"Hm, I guess that's my cue too then," spoke Kirishima as he finally gave the other some personal space and took a deep breath."Yokozawa, I-"

"Ah, wait, Masamune!"

All of the muscles in Kirishima's body tensed up; Takano may have ignored the call of his name, but that didn't quell Kirishima's unease even the slightest bit. The air between him and Yokozawa was stale until they both heard Takano distantly step into the elevator.

Yokozawa whirled to the man next to him and immediately raised his voice. "What the hell is wrong with you?!"

"..." Instead of looking guilty, Kirishima looked equally as frustrated.

"It's one thing when you're being clingy, but what the hell was _that_?!" It's not like this was the first time Kirishima attempted to indulge in PDA with Yokozawa, but it had never been to this explicit of an extent. "Actually, even when you're not this touchy, you hanging over me has gone too far! Don't you have any tact?!"

Kirishima could feel his eye twitch. "Do _I_ have tact? Yokozawa, what the hell were you doing with Takano?" he shot back with exasperation and animosity prevalent on his face and tone.

"What do you mean?! Don't tell me you thought I was going to blow Hiyori off for a few drinks!" Yokozawa grew livid at the thought of Kirishima thinking that he would ditch taking care of Hiyori for just a few hours of pleasure. Maybe that was why Kirishima had stormed in; had he come in the middle of Takano trying to make plans with him?

Kirishima's mouth went agape with shock at the accusation that was evidently way off base. "What?! Of course not!"

"Or did you think I was up to something?" Yokozawa dared to ask, his eyes challenging Kirishima to confirm it.

"No, I-! I just…" Kirishima sighed and broke eye contact as the tension on his face broke down. "I don't think you were up to anything, it's just that... seeing you with Takano just…" Kirishima paused to find the right words.

"So that's _it_? You were just _jealous_?!"

Kirishima jolted at the temper still apparent in Yokozawa's voice. Usually this would be the time were Yokozawa would assure him, albeit reluctantly, that he had eyes for no one else and that it was no use having such a petty jealousy, yet... at the moment Yokozawa showed no sign of calming down. Kirishima couldn't help but feel that Yokozawa was trying to make him feel sheepish for his behavior.

"Do you think that you can use that as an excuse every time you act up?!"

Kirishima's eyes went wide. Yokozawa was never this bold when pointing out a fault. He locked eyes with his significant other and saw none of his usual compassion present. Yokozawa was bringing up a topic unrelated to the argument at hand, yet Kirishima felt a pit in his stomach at the other's newly revealed opinion of his own tendencies. Instead of correcting the other, he let Yokozawa continue on his tangent. Curiosity killed the cat, after all.

"You just look at me with those suave eyes and expect me to _melt_ after revealing that you raised hell _just_ because you just ' _couldn't help it_ ,' but you've gone too far this time! Don't you think that he suspects something now?! Would you really have done this in front of other people?! I know Masamune won't spread around something like this, but I still-!"

"So… You didn't tell him?" Kirishima had been backing down in the argument, but his adrenaline was back to pumping. There was a slight twitch in his eye when Yokozawa had sung praise about his friend, but that wasn't the issue he wanted to address right now.

"Of course not!" snapped Yokozawa, as if Kirishima should've assumed on his own that that was the case. "It would be one thing if it was just a friendly slap on the shoulder, but surely even _you_ thought that that display was beyond common sense!"

"-!" Kirishima bolted upwards. "How have you not managed to tell him about us at this point?!" It would be one thing if Takano was just a co-worker, or a casual friend, but this was Yokozawa's former love that was put into question. It's not like he'd be fazed to hear that Yokozawa was dating another man. He hadn't exactly expected Yokozawa to go advertising that he had a new relationship, but the fact that he kept this from _Takano_ of all people...

Biting his lip at the new height difference, Yokozawa stood up himself. "There's no good reason to! And we're not talking about that right now!"

"Well then let's make it what we're talking about!"

Before they could continue arguing, the sound of the elevator ding, followed by the low murmurs of idle chat broke whatever heated words that were about to come out; this was probably for the better, but the unresolved tension left both men insatiable and ready to go at it.

"Are you sure you can even spare the time to bicker? Catch your damn train and get the hell outta' here." Yokozawa kept his volume in check upon the arrival of coworkers, but his tone was no less colder.

Kirishima glowered at the man before shooting over his shoulder with a growl. He marched right out of sales, ignoring the greetings of the three sales representatives; he didn't even bother trying to dispel their murmurs about his apparent bad mood; not having the patience for masking his ill mannerisms, he opted to leave before he might blow up at anyone else.

"Ahaha, good morning Yokozawa-san! "

Without breaking eye contact with the place that Kirishima once stood, Yokozawa nodded and muttered some half-hearted "good morning."

"I guess that you've got to lay down the law, even this early in the morning, huh?" The tone was playful, and indicated that the newcomers had the impression that Yokozawa was just being his usual hard-ass self. It was good that they didn't suspect an actual fight went down, but the naivety nonetheless wasn't helping him to calm down.

Yokozawa murmured gibberish that sounded like an agreement and sat down, rubbing the bridge of his nose in agitation.

"But even if you two are close, don't you think that that was a bit harsh to Kirishima-san? He looked pretty miffed, a-and he usually... _never_ …" The jocose tone in the man's voice had gradually phased into reluctance, eventually fizzling out into nothing when he noticed the grumpy look on Yokozawa's face.

"What a waste of time… I came here early to get some work out of the way but ended up getting nothing done," Yokozawa finally muttered as he rested his forehead on his hand. Recalling Takano's mention of an expedited deadline, he began with, "What's the status on this month's Emerald?"

* * *

While he wasn't any later than any normal work day, Yokozawa found himself sprinting all the way to the Kirishima's. By now, Hiyori would have been alone for a while, and that thought alone caused him to forget to even bring her a treat this time.

He considered that after their fight this morning, Kirishima wouldn't want him watching Hiyori while he was all worked up and hot headed, but since he got no texts from either party, he couldn't say for sure. Maybe Hiyori was cutting him off too? It wouldn't hurt to check on her anyway. He could have called to make sure, but just in case he was being exiled from the Kirishima household, he could at least catch the girl by surprise and take Sorata back while the atmosphere recovered.

At the door, Yokozawa crouched just the slightest bit to catch his breath and fumbled about his pockets looking for his key; he didn't like to use it, but just in case Hiyori wasn't home, it would have to do. He opened it and was surprised to see Hiyori at the end of the entryway, already standing there to greet him.

"Welcome, Oniichan!" Yokozawa noted that she was already donned in an apron.

"Ah… Did you start making dinner already? I'm sorry I couldn't be here on time to help you," he said as he began to slip off his shoes and coat.

"Mm-mm, don't worry about it," Hiyori assured him as she pranced back to the kitchen, a jump in her step. "You must've been working hard today, so I'm just glad that you'll be able to relax for once. I'm almost done," she informed him from the kitchen. "I'm just glad you made it!"

"..." Hiyori didn't seem to have any intention of chewing him out, but just to make sure… "Did your father not mention anything?" he asked, making his way into the kitchen to set the table.

Hiyori popped up from looking at the pot and tilted her head. "Why? Did something happen?"

"... Not at all." He couldn't bring himself to look at her when he said so and instead occupied himself with setting the table. "I just assumed that being the doting father he is, he'd have sent you a hundred messages by now."

"Actually, I haven't gotten any! Which is weird, because I was preparing myself for a barrage, but I guess not," she trilled as she stirred the pot. "He must be really busy."

It was impossible that Kirishima had forgotten about Hiyori. Yokozawa had he expected him to ask her to stay over at a friend's place or something else, but maybe he had just decided to keep Hiyori out of this particular fight. Yokozawa wholeheartedly agreed with the notion; their fights were usually one-sided so it was rare for both parties to be in mutual aggression, and that could be ugly to watch; there was no reason to ruin the youngster's weekend.

A smile cracked on Yokozawa's lips when Sorata briefly brushed between his legs before making his way to the couch, knocking him from his thoughts.

"Ah, that reminds me! Since father's going to be gone until Monday, can we save the dinner for Grandma and Grandpa until then?"

And just like that, Yokozawa's smile went. "Sure." That was as long as they were on speaking terms by then.

That whole night, Yokozawa waited for a text or a call from Kirishima, to him or Hiyori, but one never came. Over dinner, Yokozawa and Hiyori had conversed about what dishes they could cook and what they could do to spend their Saturday. Yokozawa had ultimately suggested going to the museum. As far as he knew, Hiyori could be seen drawing at any given time being the avid manga fan she was, and getting second place for her painting in that competition only increased her infatuation. Evidently, it was the right suggestion because the girl was ecstatic. Although they'd be going rather late in the afternoon due to Yokozawa's work hours, Hiyori didn't show that she minded.

Granted he found himself looking forward to the museum trip as well, Yokozawa found himself restless that whole night. Talking to Hiyori had calmed his anger, and he could only hope that a successful meet-and-greet had done the same for Kirishima. Yokozawa resorted to staring at the guestroom ceiling trying to think of ways to mend this mess.

While Kirishima had dodged every one of his inquiries, Yokozawa supposed that he was insensitive himself, and ultimately decided that prolonging their stalemate would be a waste of time. Yet, when morning came and Yokozawa had to prepare for work, he had found no solutions. _'Maybe this is good,'_ he tried to justify; it'd give him more time to think his words through, and it was better to talk these things out in person, after all.

' _I guess I'll just have to pick him up as planned then,'_ he thought incredulously. It mildly gnawed at the back of his mind he was somewhat looking forward to what little small surprise Kirishima had planned, even if the whim did ruffle him up a bit; that was assuming that he and Kirishima mended their differences anyway. _'Anything that could bridge this fight,'_ he declared to himself.

"Leaving so soon, Oniichan?" asked Hiyori, who had just woken up and ducked out of her room. She was an early bird, but Yokozawa was hoping that she would sleep in this one time. "Isn't this early, even for you?"

"Yeah, but I want to be back as soon as possible," he explained as he smiled fondly at her. "It would be bad if I ended up late like yesterday. We have plans after all, don't we?"

With this, Hiyori's eyes rose with excitement and she nodded. "Yup! Take care, Oniichan!"

Yokozawa nodded back at her and proceeded down the entryway, a tinging feeling at the back of his mind. Hiyori didn't seem to notice what bad mood both men were in, and he'd like to keep it that way.

* * *

 **Chapter 1 : The Wrong Idea.**

* * *

 _(A/N)_ : I don't know if Sapporo is that far of a train ride that it may take a few hours, but. If anyone wants to correct me on this, please feel free.

I also apologize for the lack of editing.

Anyway, thank you for reading!


	2. The Wrong Timing

Saturday had flown by in an instant; Yokozawa had been sure to finish his work earlier than planned, even skipping out on a well-deserved lunch break, as he didn't want a repeat of the day prior. By the time he made it back to the Kirishima apartment, he was starving and restless from the hours upon hours of doing paperwork, but all of his tension alleviated when he saw Hiyori practically run to the door when he arrived. Was she really that excited?

The museum trip itself was Hiyori running from painting to painting as the two tried to binge through the entire museum before its early closing time. Afterward, they had eaten out at a nearby cafe and even had a round two for desserts at a bakery. Throughout the day, they'd get casual comments from random passerbyers at how nice their father/daughter relationship seemed, but Yokozawa never bothered to correct this, and Hiyori would simply giggle every time Yokozawa was referred to as her father.

By the time the two got home, they were both exhausted from moving around so much. The two had actually fallen asleep on the couch while watching a movie together. It was still early in the night when Yokozawa was roused from his sleep, and he very carefully carried the spent Hiyori to her room, with Sorata trailing behind, before making his way to the guest room, too much in a daze to change into proper sleepwear and heading straight for the bed.

It was an interesting change of pace, as without Kirishima present, it felt more like a platonic date as opposed to a nice family outing. But that was the problem in itself. Kirishima _wasn't_ present, and that was biting at Yokozawa the whole time.

He was hoping that he had done well to hide his unease from Hiyori, as he doubted that he'd be thinking about the man this much if it weren't for their unresolved fight. Truth be told, he did consider calling the man up a few times, but stood by his decision to settle this in person, as the man was busy after all.

' _Tomorrow, we'll be able to settle things,'_ he used to motivate himself as he washed the dishes.

He and Hiyori had woken up later than usual today, so they had settled themselves for cooking a nice brunch before her grandparents arrived to pick her up in the afternoon. Hiyori was currently packing one night's stay worth of clothing, beaming that she was going to see her grandparents again after so long.

"Oniichan?"

Yokozawa turned to the side and saw Hiyori already wearing her backpack.

"Grandma just called me, and they're here early," she informed him. "They're waiting down in the lobby right now."

"Ah… Are they?" Yokozawa looked about the kitchen before responding. His eyes narrowed at all of the unclean cookware left. "Go on ahead then, I'll finish up here."

"You don't want to go and say 'hello'?"

"Well, I was planning to go home as soon as you left, so I should finish up here first," he explained.

"Let me help you then!" she suggested as she entered the kitchen.

Yokozawa shook his head. "It's fine. You're excited to see your grandparents again, right?"

Hiyori pouted. "Well yeah, but…"

He was about to ruffle her head but quickly retracted, remembering that they were coated in soapy water. "Well, why don't you wait for me and I'll meet up with you? It might be a while though because I still have to prepare Sorata's things."

"M'kay~" she trilled as she began to take her leave.

Yokozawa smiled as he heard her scuffle to put on her shoes then lightly close the front door. Taking care of Hiyori alone was a pleasant change in pace indeed, and he felt a tinge of regret at having half of his attention diverted away from the experience and towards the uncalled-for bitterness with Kirishima. He paced himself quickly to finish up the dishes and then coaxed the ever-so-difficult Sorata into his carrier.

He just barely caught the sight of the key bowl on the side table near the entryway. Pursing his lips at almost forgetting, Yokozawa pocketed the car keys with his free hand before proceeding down the hallway to slip on his shoes.

' _I wonder if I'm making them wait too long…'_ clouded the back of his mind before his head popped up at the sound of the doorbell. Having assumed that it was them, Yokozawa briefly regretted not telling Hiyori to go on without him. He ceased putting on his other shoe and opened the door with his free hand, but before he could greet anyone, he choked back his words.

Yokozawa could barely contain his surprise when faced with the unexpected appearance of Iokawa, the man he whose romantic affections he had just turned down not too long ago. Before he could demand what the man was doing there, his gaze was diverted downwards where a boy was looking up anxiously at him.

"Ah…" He had only just realized that Iokawa was probably escorting his nephew again, who happened to be Hiyori's classmate.

What was his name again? Yuuto? The boy, like all other times Yokozawa had seen him, looked a bit nervous. "Is Hiyori-san here?" Yokozawa applauded that while the boy still sounded a bit at odds, he was much more composed than last time.

"Ah, actually, she's in the lobby with her grandparents," answered Yokozawa as he continued to slip on his shoes. "She should still be downstairs, so-"

"A-Ah! Thank you!" the boy said rushedly as he took off in the direction of the elevators.

"Ah, wait-" Yokozawa tried to call out of him, but as luck may have it for the boy, the elevator was already on this floor and the doors shut almost right behind him. He was gone just as sudden as he came. "..." Yokozawa made a face, curious at just what had the boy in a tizzy.

"It seems that Hiyori-chan has gotten quite popular lately, so he wants to confess before anyone else," explained Iokawa.

Yokozawa slightly jolted, having realized that he and Iokawa were now alone.

"If you ask me though, he doesn't have to be in such a rush. She won't be hearing any more confessions within the next minute or so!" The light banter failed to put a smile on Yokozawa's face. "Must be nice to be young."

"... Shouldn't you have gone after him?" Yokozawa asked as he put down Sorata's carrier and took his coat.

"I'm sure he'll be fine," Iokawa assured him as he took a step closer to the door. "I know exactly where he's going, after all."

Yokozawa furrowed his brows.

"Ah… Yokozawa-san, I would be lying if I said that I only accompanied my nephew here to cheer him on. May I come in?"

"..." Yokozawa frowned. "This isn't my apartment, and I was just on my way out anyway," he said, crossing his arms.

"Oh no, no, trust me… I won't be trying to anything now," he said as he welcomed himself in the doorway. "I only want to have an idle chat with you. How are things going?

"If all you want is 'idle chat,' then whatever you have to say is fine out here," Yokozawa snapped back as he brushed past the man, Sorata in hand. "... And I'm fine, so if you'll excuse me, I too must get going." He'd was about to say, " _And you should be too, your nephew just ran off,"_ but he would not take the chance that they get stuck in an elevator together once again. He grimaced when Iokawa showed no signs of stepping out. "Again, this isn't my apartment, so I can't let you in alone with good faith."

"... Of course not," Iokawa replied with a melancholic smile. "You're really holding up to your loyalty with Kirishima-san, aren't you?"

"-!" This wasn't the kind of conversation to be having in public. Although he didn't spot any listeners around, he rather not risk it, so Yokozawa glared at the man.

"I know I said I'd give up on you, and I really will, but…" Iokawa broke eye contact. "That doesn't mean that I still don't have lingering feelings for you."

Yokozawa tensed up. He fought the urge to feel sympathy for the man, seeing as he was once like that himself, but again, this _really_ wasn't the conversation to have out in the open. "Hey!" he snarled, cautioning the man to keep in mind where they were. Yokozawa reached to close the door, but Iokawa had strategically stopped him from doing so by opening the door to its fullest, accidentally slamming it against the wall; the impact was loud enough to have Sorata jolt in his carrier.

"Yokozawa-san… Are you really content with Kirishima-san?" The question didn't sound intent with the purpose of planting seeds of doubt. Iokawa genuinely sounded like he wanted to know. "I won't ask you to choose me at this point, but…"

"I've told you firmly before, _yes_ , I am." Yokozawa's tone was irritable and impatient; perhaps he'd have been easier on the guy if he picked the right kind of place to talk about such a subject.

Iokawa noticed Yokozawa's uncomfortability and nodded, signifying that he'd be taking his leave soon. "Alright."

"Is that all you came here to ask?" inquired Yokozawa as he reached for the door handle, attempting to usher Iokawa out of the doorway.

After hesitating, Iokawa finally dared to ask, "Does Hiyori-chan know yet?"

"O-Of course not!" Yokozawa shot back.

"Why not? Haven't you been dating for a long time by now?" he inquired. "Excuse me for interrupting what's not my business, but won't it get harder to admit your relationship as time goes on?"

"You're right, it _isn't_ your business."

Iokawa sulked just the slightest at being reprimanded.

"..." Yokozawa sighed and caved in. "We'll deal with that when the time comes. But for now, I don't think Hiyo can handle things as they stand."

"But if you're doubting Hiyori-chan, don't you-"

Yokozawa was about to argue that he wasn't doubting Hiyori at all, but Iokawa had cut himself off and was staring just past him, eyes the size of saucers. Having a bad feeling, Yokozawa took a second to compose himself before he turned around. Who was it? A neighbor? Yuuta?

Suddenly, all of the blood drained from Yokozawa's face. He felt a hitch in his throat, his stomach was turning, his heart had started beating so heavily that he could've sworn it was going to break out of his skin at any given second. " _H-Hiyo…_ " Did this surprise him that much? It was honestly just his luck that _Hiyori_ of all people would be standing there at that moment, yet his mouth remained agape and he couldn't even blink.

He had briefly hoped that she hadn't heard much, heck, he didn't even know _when_ she would've had the time to sneak up on them. Why was she even up here anyway? It was hard to gauge just how much she heard. Her head was kept low so that Yokozawa had to get down on one knee just to look her in the face. The effort was pointless, since she just looked away. Her paralyzed features didn't ease Yokozawa in the slightest. If it was any merit at all, her grandparents weren't around, but that hardly mattered.

"... Is it true?" she finally asked, her voice the quietest he's ever heard it.

Yokozawa was about to stupidly ask, " _What?"_ just in case she really _didn't_ hear and just jumped to her own assumption, but he couldn't bring himself to; he knew doing so would just be underestimating her, and he just couldn't do that. "Hiyo…" his own voice was wavering now.

"Y-You and Father have been _dating_?! Aren't you both _guys_ though?" Hiyori clenched her fists, and the sound of rustling plastic brought Yokozawa's attention to the jittery bag she held in her hand.

"..." How could he possibly answer this with more than a simple "yes"? Yokozawa extended his hand to retrieve the shaking bag in her trembling hand as he spoke. "Hiyo, I… We…" he struggled with his words, but immediately shut up when Hiyori flinched back. He didn't know his eyes could get any wider; they were stretching so much that he was sure that his skin would rip. ' _She's… disgusted,'_ he concluded with horror. She didn't want him to even touch her. His hand stood frozen in place. "... We didn't mean to hide it from you... but... since we're both men, I..."

Hiyori finally looked at him, her eyes enraged but her lip quivering. Her cheeks were puffed out and red with ire and her eyes were glossy. "Oniichan, y-you're the worst…" she sputtered as her trembling fingertips finally lost their hold on the plastic bag. It dropped on her foot, causing her to bow back her head again and take a step back. The sound of rustling plastic was gone, but the sound of silence was even more deafening.

In shock, Yokozawa lost his hold on Sorata's carrier, which was thankfully already touching the floor. His hand fell back to his side. It was hard to tell if Kirishima was kidding or not about telling Hiyori when they first got together, but now Yokozawa considered that it would've been best to clear the air right when this whole affair began.

"Hiyo… We were going to tell you at first, but then I thought that you-"

Hiyori's eyes flashed wider as she looked back at him, causing Yokozawa to choke on his words. There was no excuse. Dread cradled her features, which lacked all of its usual grace at the moment.

"..." Yokozawa had wished that Kirishima was around. Surely, he would've handled the situation much better. ' _But he's not here right now…'_ So he could only blame himself for this horrific outcome, cursing himself for his awkwardness. "I'm sorry, Hiyo… I know how you're feeling but-"

"You have no idea how I feel!" she snapped back, catching Yokozawa off guard. He flinched back, but that didn't seem to affect her. There was resentment all over her face. " _I hate you, Oniichan!_ "

Yokozawa felt weak.

He feel he could be tipped over at any second with the slightest touch, but he had to compose himself because Hiyori began to storm away. "Hiyo, _wait_!" He fumbled to his feet, lurching forward when he heard a voice behind him.

"Yokozawa-san, I-I'm sorry…"

Yokozawa let himself get distracted and whipped around, spotting Iokawa still standing in the damn doorway. The sound of the elevator doors closing brought him back to his senses. He almost raced to them but deemed that pointless.

" _Shit!_ " Frantic, Yokozawa gave himself but a few seconds to plot out what he was going to do.

"I didn't do it on purpose, I promise," pleaded Iokawa. "I'm sorry, I really am!" He sounded sincere, but all appeals went deaf to Yokozawa's ears.

Yokozawa dashed to finally close the God-forsaken door, ignoring the yelp that Iokawa let out upon being shoved by it. He grabbed Sorata, reasoning it was good that he got distracted as he probably would've forgotten the carrier in his race to catch Hiyori.

He ran to the elevator and slammed the button, cursing under his breath when he saw that neither elevators were even remotely close to his floor. Yokozawa weighed his options as he jolted back in forth and held back a growl as he headed for the staircase. This whole time, Sorata had been bouncing against the carrier walls, hissing his discomfort, and Yokozawa opted to cradle the carrier so that it would sway less. He practically rammed into the door leading to the stairs and momentum almost caused him an ugly fall.

"It's a shame that Hiyori-chan couldn't accept you…"

The door behind him closed, and Yokozawa found himself halted. ' _She didn't accept…'_ Yokozawa shook off his thoughts and ran ten-speed down the endless steps.

He had already messed up in not going after Kirishima just two days prior, so like hell he'd make the same mistake with Hiyori. If he didn't confront this _right now_ , it may really be over for them.

' _But… What if…'_ As he got closer and closer to the ground floor, Yokozawa subconsciously got slower and slower. What if she didn't want him to come for her? What if she was truly repulsed and would never accept the nature of their relationship? What if she told her grandparents and they felt the same..?

By the time he got to the lobby, his mad dash had turned into a jog. With ragged breath he shot his head around the lobby, ignoring the odd look that the two women coming in gave him. "Tch!" he fought the urge to curse in front of company and sprinted for the front door. As expected, Hiyori nor her grandparents were in sight.

Maybe if he waited for the elevator, he could've caught them. Maybe if he didn't bother to hear Iokawa out, Hiyori wouldn't have heard what she didn't need to hear. Maybe if he was just a bit faster in finishing up washing the dishes, he would have missed Iokawa completely and avoided this whole mess.

Yokozawa bit his lip in order to combat the urge to scream and walked up to the nearest tree. He kicked with all of his might, agitation growing when he was met with a shower of falling Sakura petals.

* * *

Although he patiently waited for the elevator this time around, Yokozawa felt like he had just trudged back up all of those flights of stairs. His movements were more sluggish and he felt drained inside-out. ' _My coat… I left it behind…'_ was all he could think to distract himself from his frustration with himself. _'Why couldn't I handle that situation?'_

"This is the worst possible way…" he muttered as he leaned against the back of the elevator, fighting the impulse to slide down and just sit there with his head in his hands. The shock still hadn't left his facial features.

The elevator felt like it took its sweet time getting to the floor, and Yokozawa took the same pace in filing out. He looked down at the carrier, still cradled in his arms, as he habitually made his way to the Kirishimas'.

Iokawa was no longer in sight, and that recognition made Yokozawa wonder just where the hell Yuuto went. He had hoped that the boy was not subject to any backlash Hiyori might give. Possibly as a gesture of feeling guilty, Iokawa had neatly placed Yokozawa's coat to hand off of the doorknob. Yokozawa snatched it, but it was weightier than usual. He noticed that something was under the coat and put down Sorata's carrier to take it.

"..." It was the plastic bag that Hiyori had been holding. Yokozawa took each item individually, dropping them to his side. A wrapped box, a wrapped package that had some kind of cloth inside, another box... and an envelope. He juggled the last two with his hand and with great hesitance, opened the envelope.

" _Dear Yokozawa-san,_

 _Thank you for always taking care of Hiyori, and our son too I'm sure! Please enjoy these, because you're practically like family to them at this point._

 _From,-"_

His thumb was blocking the proper closure, but that didn't matter now as the whole note was soon crumpled in his palm. Yokozawa belted out the curse he had been holding in this whole time and force-palmed the present in his hand against the door.

The hair on his neck stood up when he heard the sound of something fragile shattering, and he could further feel his hysterics heighten when it fell to the ground, the acute sounds of shards hitting each other irritating his ears.

Yokozawa could his eyes begin to finally give into the temptation, and in a desperate attempt to stop it, he blinked a few times. He listlessly crouched down and piled the two intact gifts back into the plastic bag and held Sorata's carrier in his other hand. He should get going before the neighbors come out to see what the commotion was.

It was about time that he left.

* * *

 **Chapter 2 : The Wrong Timing**

* * *

 _(A/N)_ : If Hiyori seemed off to you, hopefully I can put some insight on that in future chapters.

This one's shorter than last chapter, but I swear I thought it was gonna be longer. Well, that's what I get for actually outlining my story for once. Moral of the story : Keep winging it. There are supposed to be two more chapters, but if next chapter turns out as short as this one, I figure that I'll just merge the two.

Also, the illustration thing I mentioned last chapter is put off until further notice because school's being a real' jerk right now. It was hard enough to get this one chapter in.

Speaking of last chapter, I did go back and edit that. I'd like to apologize once again for posting it without bothering to edit it. I fixed as many spelling/grammar errors as I could, and even added back the few lines that got mysteriously deleted, but there aren't any significant changes that you'd have to go back and reread it. Hopefully it just reads better in general.

(I'm so freakin' corny. _Sakura_ petals. They were originally leaves but then it occurred to me that Sakura was the name of Hiyo's mom.)

Also I rewrote that Hiyori and Yokozawa scene a couple of times, but in the end I just wasn't content, so pointers would be nice. I'm terrible at writing drama anyway, so.

Once again, thanks for reading/reviewing/following/favoriting~

* * *

Guest : Thanks~ I appreciate it and hope you enjoyed this chapter~

Ash : Why thank you~ I hope I lived up to the characterization in this chapter too, but if Hiyo turned out to be a bit OOC, I hope to explain myself eventually. I also went back to edit the first chapter, but I'm still embarrassed to have put that abomination up XD I hope this chapter met your expectations~ And I've been planning to make Trifecta stories for the longest time since I too am unsatisfied with their lack of love in the fanfiction community, but I get this amazing writer's block where I can't write past the first chapter. _It's the best_. Thanks again for reviewing~


	3. The Wrong Words

Releasing the umpteenth sigh of the evening, Yokozawa let his head hang back and ran his fingers through his hair before opening a can of beer with a "pop" that rang in the otherwise dead silent room. He crouched back forward and took a prolonged sip, lips never leaving the can.

He had no intention of getting drunk. Yokozawa had learned his lesson from before; all that an alcohol binge could do for him was lead him to yet another rash decision that would do him, nor his loved ones, any good. Besides, he only had the one can anyway. Lately there was no need to stock up, as he would always buy a fresh pack on his way to…

The can was briefly distanced from his lips as he released yet another sigh. Yokozawa took his sweet time before bringing it back, hardly even sipping, intending to make the one can last him the night.

He was alone this time around, as Sorata had steered clear of him once released from his carrier. As always, Sorata had caught wind of Yokozawa's foul mood. ' _Smart cat, taking a hint.'_

The bag of souvenirs remained kicked under the coffee table, as he hadn't bothered to open them at all. Considering the note packaged with them, Yokozawa had felt that opening them would be an act of betrayal. An act of betrayal... to _who exactly?_ It was all so confusing. At this point, the can was still pressed to Yokozawa's lips despite him taking no effort to empty it of its contents. At this realization, he set the can down and leaned back, thinking to himself.

He was in a trance the whole way back to his home, Hiyori's words and faces of betrayal clouding his mind. Yokozawa hadn't even realized that he was hine until he was faced with a closed door, causing him to habitually grope his pocket for his keys. ' _That was the worst possible way it could've…'_ was his unfinished thought, due to him being faced with an all-too-familiar keycase now in his palm. Upon entering the apartment, Yokozawa didn't even remember if he tossed the item aside with heated emotions, or placed it gently somewhere in his way.

Yokozawa had always convinced himself that he was prepared to leave if Hiyori showed even the slightest bit discomfort at his unusual presence, yet when actually faced with the issue at hand… It appeared that he wasn't ready at all. He hadn't felt this terrible since that one night from long ago, but this time was different.

When his one-sided love had been rejected, he had felt empty.

But right now he was filled with so much anguish and grief that he would consider it a godsend if he had felt nothing.

… Yet feeling nothing at a time like now would be like convincing himself that there was nothing to begin with, and he _couldn't_ let go of the feelings he once, and still, treasured.

Yokozawa grit his teeth at his inconsistent sentiments.

It was true that Yokozawa had the slightest expectation that Hiyori wouldn't approve of their unnatural relationship. She would be at odds, intolerable, or even censure about it. But deep down, maybe he had the same faiths that Kirishima had: that she _wasn't_ a bigoted child. But he couldn't bring himself blame to her for her standpoint; she was a child, easily impressed upon by the outdated ways of society. Even so, he hadn't expected such fervent hostility from her.

' _I just didn't want her to hate me.'_ Even if it was no longer mutual, Hiyori was still one of the few precious things he considered himself to have. Both her and Kirishima of course. And as he put more and more thought into it, he still prioritized her happiness.

Hiyori would never accept their relationship, at least within the near future, so any chances of him growing on her as a potential parental figure had been disillusioned. And she would need a mother… And Kirishima, although assuring Yokozawa that he would be welcomed to her with open arms, would still have to put Hiyori's feelings over Yokozawa's when finally confronted with this. It was his duty as a father after all, and he had done damn well to stay loyal to this in regards to Hiyori's sentimentality.

Maybe Kirishima could, no... He _would_ find a woman who fit his family's needs more. Yokozawa was always prepared to kindly step away from the happy family when such a woman showed, but maybe an opportunity as such would only show up if Yokozawa was out of the picture… At first he had no intentions of letting go unless he approved of the woman, but without Yokozawa there to hold him back, maybe Kirishima would actually make an effort to go out on his own.

"Yes… That's right…"

It truly felt like he was living a fantasy, his small time with the Kirishimas, but he wasn't what was best for them. And he was too grateful, indebted even, to even _think_ of holding them back like this.

"That's exactly what I have to do…" he muttered, sulking further down until his back ached at the impossible position. He lazily grabbed for the can, the once electrifyingly cold metal long tamed, and began to gulp down. How long had he been sulking there, exactly?

Instead of easing himself out of that household, he would have to end things as they were.

Kirishima had been so adamant, so confident that Hiyori would take well to the news that Yokozawa couldn't bring himself to shatter the honorable light that he held her in; Yokozawa wanted her to save face in front of Kirishima. He didn't want any backlash to upset Hiyori more than she already was either. So before Hiyori would get the chance to disapprove of their relationship, he'd have to end things now.

And while he would just love to call Kirishima up, he couldn't bring himself ruin the man's evening. He was probably out celebrating with the staff for the tour, and he didn't want to disrespect the man with any sort of cowardice. This sort of thing had to be done face to face.

Yokozawa patted the coat lazily splayed next to him until he felt a bump; it was the car keys that he had taken. Because most of all, he wanted to grant himself the selfish request of seeing the man's face _one last time..._

Not in a work setting, but while they were still a couple: while the wall of subordinate and superior was still nonexistent. A time like this would never present themselves again, so he'd need to savor it while he could.

* * *

" _Ah, Yokozawa-san! You finally answered!"_

"Ah…"

" _I tried to call you yesterday, but I guess I was too late, haha!"_

"Mm… It's alright, it was my fault. I must have left my phone off." The tone was slightly apologetic. "Was it anything important?"

" _Not really,"_ trilled Henmi on the other line. There were a lot of voices in the background, signifying he was someplace crowded. Yokozawa had deduced that he was on his way home, having caught the morning rush at the station. " _I was just going to give you a status report on the tour!"_

"That's not necessary. Just drop by the report when you get back."

" _Eh? You're not even going to ask if it went well or not?"_

"Of course it went well! You sure as hell better not be calling to tell me otherwise," he warned in a tone just short of a bark.

" _O-Of course not!"_ The reply was too quick for its own good. " _Ijuuin-sensei was really attentive to his fans, and the venues were really accommodating! Everything turned out really successful! Without a hitch!"_

"... But?"

" _..."_ Henmi hesitated, debating whether to confide in Yokozawa or not. " _Don't get me wrong, Yokozawa-san… He did everything that he needed to and didn't slip up once, but something about Kirishima-san was a bit… off?"_

Yokozawa inhaled sharply.

" _Even at the drinking party, he wasn't nearly as sociable as he usually is. It even caught Ijuuin-Sensei off guard, but you didn't hear it from me!"_

"... Hey, are you sure that you should be freely spouting about shit like this?"

" _I-I'm just worried, that's all!"_ Henmi assured him. " _He was no different from usual work-wise, but whenever something didn't relate to work, he just kinda' distanced himself from the conversation is what I'm trying to say,"_ he explained in a leveled tone, perhaps trying to convince Yokozawa that it wasn't as big as a deal as he was making it out to be. " _So I was actually wondering if you knew why! But if you don't…"_

Knowing that their fight was probably what caused Kirishima to be off of his game put Yokozawa on edge. He knew that their fights usually led Kirishima to be gloomy at home, as Hiyori had implied, but Yokozawa didn't think it'd leak into his work life.

"..." Yokozawa hesitated, trying to think of how he should approach the issue; Henmi seemed more concerned than usual, and he wouldn't want to condescendingly dispel the guy's worry. "If he was, I'm sure he'll bounce right back out of it. The man was spirited away for work at the last second, after all."

" _Oh, I suppose you're right! I guess we all got worried for nothing! Then, I'll see you at the office!"_

"Yup." After exchanging pleasantries, Yokozawa hung up and exhaled a large breath that he hadn't even realized he was holding in. ' _Just the kind of shit that I need to be worrying about first thing in the morning…'_

Since there was no Hiyori to rush back to, the man was allowed to wake up at a more leisurely time. It was late enough that employees were scattered about almost every room of the building, so Yokozawa hardly had the privacy to go on and sulk. Although he was zoned out upon entering the building, he couldn't help but notice a peculiar conversation before him as he waited for the elevator.

"What? But how do you know it wasn't just a friend of his?" one man said to another.

"If he really intended to housesit, don't you think he would've brought more than a tiny carry-on?"

Yokozawa's eye twitched. He had a bad feeling about where this was going.

"But how do you know for sure?"

"I saw it for myself! It was under his desk. If he was putting in that much effort in to hide it, don't you think that he was trying to keep it a secret?! Yokozawa-san definitely slept over his girlfriend's place over the weekend!"

"Man! I'm jealous! Isn't he ever the popular one lately!"

With more bite in his tone than usual, he growled, " _I'm not really all that popular_."

"Y-Yokozawa-san!" the two men yelped in unison, whirling around with pale faces and rickety legs.

Yokozawa tried to return a smile to get some answers out of them but his eyes were not at all close to the playfulness he was aiming for, failing to quell the two men's nervousness. " _Huh?_ I really was just house-sitting for a friend of mine. Who the hell told you I had a girlfriend?" he demanded.

"O-Oh, um! It wasn't us!"

"Yeah, yeah, that's just what everyone's saying!"

"..." Yokozawa grimaced. His sales floor would probably be indiscreet gossip and stolen glances all day. _Just what else he needed this morning_.

"A-Ah! But we'll vouch for you, s-so-" one of the men began, but he jumped when the elevator ding cut him off. The poor guy looked ready to bolt, while his companion looked like he was ready to melt in place and just cease to exist.

" _Well?_ Aren't you gonna _get in?_ "

The two gaped; unbeknownst to him, Yokozawa was fancying a face that screeched bloody murder. Without even bothering to respond, one man grabbed the other and they ran away.

Yokozawa narrowed his eyes as he watched their fleeing forms before shaking his head and entering the elevator alone. He rubbed the bridge of his nose in agitation, resting his back against the wall when the doors closed. ' _What is this, the third time I've had to deal with those gossiping assholes?'_

The rumors alone had done well to rise his blood pressure, but it was also learning about the unease that he condemned Kirishima to, and the firm belief that his coworkers would tactlessly tease and prod him about his supposed _girlfriend_ … The term "girlfriend" made it worse, as that wasn't too far from the truth. _Even if it wouldn't be the truth for long..._

As he neared his floor, he gave a light kick to the metal wall and cursed under his breath. ' _Just what I fucking needed...'_

* * *

The day dragged on excruciatingly slowly.

Yokozawa didn't bother rushing his work like usual since he didn't need to rush back for Hiyori, but perhaps he had been too lost in his thoughts to properly concentrate. As a result, he was actually _late_ for once, putting him behind schedule for the day. Perhaps this had been his own futile attempt at prolonging what was soon to come.

Surprisingly, the gossip about him had died out early in the morning as many people were cautioned of his supposedly obvious temperament. Yokozawa had overheard some speculate a fight between his "girlfriend" while others argued that he might've just been irritated at the gossip; he hadn't bothered to correct either sides, since neither sides were _completely_ wrong.

And while the drive was supposed to be lengthy, Yokozawa found himself in yet another trance as he made his way Sapporo. It was no less than a miracle that he hadn't managed to crash into anything in his daze.

He kept playing the scenarios in his mind: how they'd interact after not speaking for days, how they'd feel after such a bitter fight, or what the atmosphere in the car would be like, and where, when, how, Yokozawa would get his words out… But that was assuming Kirishima was waiting for him at all.

Not only was Yokozawa leaving work late, but they'd never re-confirmed that Yokozawa would be picking him up. Not to mention, maybe Kirishima wanted some more time away from Yokozawa, or maybe he really did take a train back. But if Kirishima did take a train back, he probably would've been with Henmi since there was no point in splitting up, and not only did Henmi show up at the office without Kirishima, but he wouldn't have been talking over the phone about Kirishima if the man was right next to him.

All he could do was hope that he didn't miss Kirishima. The regret of not calling him first was in the back of his mind as he pulled into the hotel's parking garage. For some reason, being the only one in the garage put his mind at ease, even if the loud echoes of his footsteps were eerie. He could've been quieter if he wasn't wearing his work loafers but it wasn't as if he had the opportunity to change them, coming straight from work and all.

His eyes remained downcast until he reached the out-of-place gold trim glass door radiating light into the dull grey garage. He took his hand out of his pocket to push, but before he could open the door to its full extent, he noticed shoes walk into his vision.

Looking up, he saw a familiar face look back down at him. Pursed lips and a tight gaze, Kirishima looked down into his lover's eyes without muttering a single word

Was he still angry at Yokozawa for losing his temper? Was he angry that Yokozawa was late to pick him up? Yokozawa opened his mouth to greet the man and apologize for his tardiness, but his voice caught in his throat; knowing the outcome of their next conversation, Yokozawa found himself terrified to even speak.

Kirishima bypassed the small gap in the door and walked past Yokozawa with a finesse and coolness that was unlike himself; it was cold, and Yokozawa could almost shiver at the iciness his lover snubbed him with. Yokozawa couldn't bring himself to call him out on his behavior, so he instead followed the man who apparently already knew where the car was parked.

When Kirishima didn't demand the keys and made his way to the passenger side, Yokozawa felt a bit of ease on his shoulders. For some reason, the thought of initiating conversation while he was in the submissive passenger seat made him feel anxious.

But just how long were they going to keep up this silence? Surely they wouldn't be having the silent treatment the whole ride back. He slipped into the driver's seat without even a glance at the other passenger. The engine hummed and the sound of depressed, skittering rubble under the tires broke the silence, but neither actually decided to speak.

Yokozawa took back; the silence was unbearable and someone needed to talk, so for the next half hour or so, Yokozawa would find himself with his mouth open, but dread would rob him of his voice every time.

Probably paying heed to the fact that Yokozawa obviously had something on his mind, Kirishima might have been waiting for him to say something first; but evidently, his patience was running low and the silence was unbearable for him too. Kirishima rested his elbow on the side of the car and looked out the window, choosing the worst words to break the silence. "... So, was Sorata Takano's cat?"

"-!" The hairs on Yokozawa's neck stood up at the sudden sound of Kirishima's voice, and his shoulders only slumped back down once he processed the words' content. "..."

"... I've just been wondering, since he did say he didn't see his cat in ages. A while back, you told Hiyori that Sorata once belonged to someone else," explained Kirshima, pressing his cheek against the window.

Yokozawa bit his lip. All he had to do was confirm it, or even give a nod of his head, but for some reason he felt like he was treading really thin ice.

"Well, that's not important now anyway," Kirishima finally said, allowing Yokozawa a temporary peace of mind. "I know that we fought, but… I wasn't at all surprised when I saw you there, walking towards me. I knew that despite our little tiff, you'd still hold our end of the deal. You'd come for me, and you'd still take care of Hiyori… So _thank you_."

Yokozawa clenched his teeth. He was about to respond, but apparently Kirishima wasn't done yet.

"And I trust you, _I really do_ …"

Yokozawa inhaled sharply at the unexpected confession. That was probably why Hiyori wasn't informed of their fight on Kirishima's end, nor was she sent away to some friend's house to be watched by someone else instead. The thought almost made Yokozawa swoon, but he reminded himself just what was coming up next. He couldn't let himself get swept away in the moment.

"So…Y'know I only freaked out because…" Kirishima craned his head down just the slightest bit; due to embarrassment, frustration, or just a flummox of emotion, Yokozawa couldn't tell. "Hell, you're so damn _comfortable_ with Takano! I get it, you've been close friends, and I won't deny that you'll probably be closer in some ways, but…

"I'm jealous, but it's not some petty jealousy! I trust you, so I'm positive that you had nothing malicious in mind, but… I heard you doting on him, and I know you dote on Hiyori too, and trust me, I don't want you treating me with child gloves, but I don't think you've ever expressed that kind of care for me unless some grim moment called for it, or I've chased you into a corner... It's never been unprovoked. And… you can go on and touch him on your own without thinking much of it, without hesitating or flinching, and… you laugh and smile for him so easily, yet I rarely have any of that directed at _myself_. You'd easily give it up for him or Hiyori, but when it comes to me, I just… Sometimes, I wonder…

"I'm not doubting you, it's just… sometimes, it feels like you're trying to stop yourself from growing too attached to me."

Kirishima's entire speech was awkward and full of him fumbling to get the right words out, yet honest throughout; unlike most of its contents, though, that last bit was said with uncertainty, almost begging Yokozawa to deny it. It tugged at Yokozawa's heart, how this was the most nervous he'd ever seen Kirishima. He even related to not feeling like the closest person to his lover. All of that, with the load of confessions that Yokozawa couldn't bring himself to argue untrue, completely defeated him.

In order to fight the physical signs of his anxiety, Yokozawa gripped tightly at the steering wheel, veins looking ready to pop. "I…" Yokozawa mentally berated himself for being at a loss of words.

But anything commending Kirishima for opening up to him would be counterintuitive to what Yokozawa was soon going to do. If he bothered to try and disperse any of Kirishima's worries, it would make their breakup that much more unbelievable, and he refused to plant seeds of doubt when he was firm with carrying out this decision.

Kirishima was waiting for Yokozawa's answer, but continued on with the man showed no signs of saying anything. "... And, y'know, you still call him ' _Masamune_ …'"

The attempt to insinuate a conversation was pathetic, and did nothing to alleviate the tense air between the two.

"And when you called out for him instead of me…"

"..."

"We were both trying to leave…"

"..."

"And when I learned that he didn't know about us," continued Kirishima, impatience now prevalent on all of his features. "This isn't just a _friend_ we're talking about, so I panicked and didn't know how to respond!"

' _Say something, damn it!'_ Despite the order he gave himself, Yokozawa only gave out a groan of irritation at his own indecisiveness.

Vexed by the pathetic response, Kirishima's head snapped in his direction. It was truly a sight to behold when Kirishima's face phased from piqued to suspicious, as most of the time the man knew just exactly how to feel. He spoke slowly, almost as if feared the answer when he asked, "Yokozawa, why the hell are you acting so strange?"

He opened his mouth to speak, but again, his vocals failed him. He clamped down on his jaw and stared forward, refusing to meet the eyes that were boring holes into him.

Kirishima began to lean in closer to him with every new interrogation. "Are you still angry?"

"No..."

"Did I… Do something?"

He bit his lip. "O-Of course not…"

" _Yokozawa!"_

He inhaled sharply at the desperate plea, guilt consuming him.

"If you're just preoccupied with driving, then at least say so…"

"No, that's not it at all…" was the pitiful response he muttered, hardly audible.

Kirishima's volume increased tenfold as he finally lost his patience and wailed, "Stop the car and speak to me, damn it!"

Yokozawa fully intended to come up with a response, he really did; but not wanting to half-ass anything, he briefly looked down into his lap to find the words, and Kirishima interpreted this act as him unskillfully continuing to dodge confrontation.

"YOKOZAWA!"

Yokozawa's shoulder jumped when Kirishima reached out and placed a hand on it. The frown on his face was misinterpreted by the other as ire. Kirishima flinched, eyes wide with shock at his lover's reaction, as he hesitantly retracted his hand; it was hard to tell if it trembled because of the car or because he was just that taken aback.

Kirishima faced front, losing all will to bother with trying to look Yokozawa in the eye, but it was because of this that he missed the look of great remorse on Yokozawa's face.

* * *

The rest of the car ride was silence.

Other than the hum of the engine, there had been no noise until it began to rain, the droplets bursting on the hood, hammering unpleasant drumming into their ears.

At some point, Kirishima had leaned his head against the window and Yokozawa had hoped that he had fallen asleep along the way, but evidently this wasn't the case as Kirishima's head nodded back upon spotting familiar territory as they got closer and closer to the apartment complex. Finally, Yokozawa drew into the parking lot. When the engine died off, Yokozawa could've sworn that his heart palpitations had filled the void of no noise.

Kirishima begrudgingly reached for the door handle when Yokozawa's stopped him.

"... Alright, I'm ready to talk. Here's good."

Kirishima settled back down and looked at Yokozawa expectantly, waiting for him to explain himself.

Yokozawa closed his eyes briefly. If he didn't stand strong now, his weak constitution would fail to convince Kirishima to take him seriously. "Kirishima-san, these past few days apart have given me time to think."

Kirishima looked at his lover hard, but the other man just wouldn't turn to him.

"... I've loved being a part of your family," he made sure that those words were heard before he would never have the opportunity to speak them again, "but it's just like you said. I don't want to grow too attached to you, and I'm not just spouting some tsundere bullshit here." He hadn't wanted to resort to lying to the man, but as he thought about it on the long drive home, this was probably the only way that both parties could just _let go_.

Kirishima's eyes hardened, and although he looked like he wanted to object, he let the man continue.

"I just think… that I got swept up in the moment. I'm thankful that you supported me when I needed it, and I did like you for a while, but this isn't the long-lasting relationship that you've tried to build us up to be, so... it'll be best for both us if I stopped stringing you on." Yokozawa stole a side glance at Kirishima and then anchored back into his position, unable to look him in the eye.

"Yokozawa, you gotta' be kidding me," Kirishima replied, exasperated as he gave a pat on the guy's shoulder, his tone as patronizing as his actions. "Don't you ever worry me like that again, you asshole. I swear, I was this close to a heart attack!"

Yokozawa's eyes narrowed in mild irritation. "What the hell? Didn't you hear a word I just _said_?"

"Mm, yeah, but quite frankly I don't believe you when you spout shit like this. Really, every time something comes up, you look for a way out. Have some confidence and face this head on." Kirishima attempted to poke the other's cheek to top it all off. "You gotta know by now that I won't be having any of it. It's not just choosing you above everyone else, I choose being with you over being with no one. So what is it this time?" The question asked sounded almost obligatory.

Yokozawa swallowed hard, a hardly noticeable twitch to his eye. "I'm being serious here…"

"As am I," retorted Kirishima. "If you're _really_ serious about this, then I expect you to be able to look me in the eye," he challenged. "You've been avoiding it all day, so that obviously means you're speaking with your tail between your legs," he finished with a trill as he flashed Yokozawa with a warm smile. "So just tell me what the problem is, and we'll work it out."

Although touched by the sentiments, Yokozawa grew irate at both Kirishima's condescending attitude and just his own inability to just get this breakup over with. Overwhelmed with impatience, he failed to stop himself from snapping, "Quit acting so self important and listen to me!"

It was the look on Kirishima's face that made Yokozawa realize that those words were unnecessary. "..."

" _I didn't mean it that way!"_ is what he wanted to say... but didn't; if he was going to take that back, then they'd probably reconcile and fail to separate this time around. Yokozawa needed to end things _now_. For _Hiyori._

But then it struck Yokozawa. He really meant those words. Not in the same, bitter context that Kirishima had interpreted, but still…

"..." It hurt Yokozawa a bit, but if this was the only way for Kirishima to really see what he was trying to say, he'd have to feed off of his uncensored honesty and exaggerate his petty annoyances to actual complaints. "This is one of the damn problems I have with you…" he began reluctantly. "Also, I just can't handle you being so damn possessive. And quite honestly I don't take too well to you acting like you can control my emotions on a whim either. And no matter how many times I bring it up, you still can't keep your hands to yourself in the office! Do you _think_ I want to be touched in public?!"

"... You're joking, right?" Kirishima asked. Although his voice had a hint of merriment to it, his undertone quivered just a bit. It was if he was denying what he was hearing and classifying it as a cruel prank. "You want to break up just because-"

"And listen to me for once, damn it!" It took all it had in him to not have his voice waver.

"But I _have been_ …" Despite his words, Kirishima looked conflicted, as if he was considering this himself.

Yokozawa exhaled deeply, knowing he was about to regret the words he was going to say. He turned away from Kirishima completely and opened the car door, stepping out eagerly to get out of the confined space. "Sorata's already at my place, so let's call an end to it here."

"Wh-" Yokozawa could hear the car door whip open, followed by Kirishima jumping out in a panic. Kirishima's anxiousness grew when he saw Yokozawa begin to leave, not even sparing him a glance. He quickly circumvented the car to catch up with the man who only cared to show him his back. There was a jerk to his step, almost a jog. " _Yokozawa_ , where the hell do you think you're going..?" His voice was frail, to the point that it was almost drowned out by the heavy rain.

"I'm going home." The answer was firm, and though he praised himself for it, Yokozawa felt shame welt up in him. "Tell Hiyo that I'm sorry that I couldn't help her with that dinner for your parents."

Kirishima quickened his pace to catch up. "Don't you at least want to talk about this..?"

Yokozawa halted. "We just did."

"You can't mean to head back _now!_ " The defense for Yokozawa not to leave was dripping with desperation. "... It's already late, and… it's raining. Just, come inside…"

Yokozawa hesitated before coldly declaring, "Nighttime or crappy weather, it's not terrible enough of a reason for me to stay here." He proceeded to leave.

Kirishima allowed the man a few more steps before calling out, " _Takafumi!_ "

Yokozawa felt a knot in his throat and stopped in his tracks. His heart sunk as the callous words began to leave his mouth. "Since we're no longer together, it'd be best if you tried to avoid slips like that from now on. I don't want this to affect work, after all."

And with that, Yokozawa left with Kirishima frozen in place to gape at his fleeting form. Neither saw just how devastated the other's face was.

* * *

Kirishima didn't know how long he'd been watching Yokozawa leave, but by the time he found the strength to finally get moving, the man had long ago disappeared into the distance. His mind was restless, and he couldn't stop hearing those words spoken to him. He could hardly accept that they had just broken up just like that. And while he should've been wondering _why_ things had turned out this way, he could only worry about Yokozawa's well being in the storm. ' _I wonder if he's okay.'_

If he was okay in the downpour, that was, since Kirishima could hardly wrap his mind around the events that just happened. When was the last time he'd even been in this much denial? ' _I can fix this,'_ Kirishima told himself multiple times, but then he considered…

What if Yokozawa really didn't want to be with him? Had he really been looking down on Yokozawa's constitution all this time? Because that had _never_ been his intent...

He trekked back to the apartment complex, and it felt like hours for the elevator to come down. Two people had piled out of it and avoided him with grim expressions. Apparently his discomposure was apparent on his features, but Kirishima didn't care to watch his social graces at a time like this.

It took equally as long to get to his damn floor. He stepped out, never once looking up, and took sluggish steps towards his apartment. When faced with the door, his weak fingers fumbled about to search for his key, almost forgetting to turn the knob when he pushed the door open.

Upon stepping inside, Kirishima had habitually taken a whiff of the air. The scent of something cooking was absent, leaving him in a sour mood. He had gotten so used to one of them, or the both of them, rushing to get dinner done before he had arrived home. Even if he was late, there would be a plate waiting for him at the table, infusing the room with its aroma.

Although the sound of a sizzling stove or clashing tableware was missing, it wasn't quiet. He could hear the low hum of the television coming from the living room, and lazily taking off his shoes, he neared the couch. It sounded like the news, and that hardly ever piqued Hiyori's interest unless Yokozawa or himself was next to her.

It had turned out to be his mother who had come to drop Hiyori off. She was casually lounging on the couch, but Hiyori was nowhere to be seen or heard. By now, Kirishima would have heard her scurry down to the genkan and greet him with a cheery, "Welcome back!" but that didn't happen.

" _You were late, so she went to go play with her friend for a while,"_ his mother had explained. " _Yuki-chan?"_

Ah, so she wasn't here right now. That was probably for the better.

" _What's wrong Zen?"_

They didn't need to know. But at the very least, it gave him a warning to compose himself before Hiyori came home. Kirishima had dispersed his mother's worry, playing it off as being exhausted from work.

" _We've already had dinner, so you don't need to worry about feeding her. It seemed like Hiyo-chan wanted to talk to you alone, so I was just going to leave once you came back."_

The news piqued Kirishima's interest, but when he inquired about it, his mother didn't seem to know the reason.

" _Ah, is Yokozawa-san not with you?"_

It was a pathetic excuse, but Kirishima told them that after he dropped him off, something had come up, forcing Yokozawa away on business. He thanked his mother for watching Hiyori, and she left soon after. It seemed that his parents had plans of their own tonight, and he felt just a bit guilty for holding them up.

Kirishima took his mother's place on the couch and texted Hiyori to come back whenever she was done playing. In the meantime, he needed some time to think, but hardly five minutes later, Hiyori came barging through the front door.

"Father! Yokozawa-Oniichan!" she shrieked, storming through the entryway.

' _I guess she's angry with me then.'_ Kirishima contended to force a smile upon himself before Hiyori could grasp at just how depressed he was right now. "Ah, Hiyo… Welcome home," he greeted with a tone that perfectly masked his melancholy.

"Where's Oniichan?!" she demanded as she drew into the couch.

"Ah, something came up, so Yokozawa won't be joining us tonight… He apologizes for not being able to help you today," he told her. "So what's on your mind?"

" _Eeh?_ " Hiyori whined irritably. She ignored her father's inquiry. "When's the next time he's coming over here?" She strutted impatiently to her father after hanging up her coat.

"... Actually, we got into a fight, so I'm not sure if he'll be coming over anytime soon," he admitted reluctantly. He couldn't stall forever, after all.

" _Eh?_ Really?! Well that's what you get for making him drive all that way," she replied, some of her aggression lessening. "You weren't being too bossy, were you?"

"..."

"Hurry up and go apologize to him! You should make up before things get too bad," she nagged. "I need to talk to the both of you!" Hiyori was now standing across from him with her cheeks puffed out and her eyes arched with tenacity.

Kirishima grinned back at her pouty face. _How cute of her_. There was no way in hell that he'd drag her into this mess. "Alright, I'll see what I can do."

However, Hiyori noticed that something was off about her father and her features immediately softened. "... Father? What's wrong?"

He couldn't look her in the eyes. "Oh, nothing, don't worry… It'll all blow over. You had dinner, right?"

"..." She wasn't convinced and pouted in an attempt to get her father to spill.

Kirishima couldn't bring himself to continue the charade and gave into his emotions, leaning forward and letting his head hang front. "This isn't like the other times… This one's a really bad fight, and… you won't be seeing Yokozawa around here for a long time."

Hiyori's already big eyes enlarged from the shock of the statement. Never had she heard her father's voice so… _troubled_.

"I'm sorry, Hiyori," he said running a hand through his hair. "I... really messed up this time."

* * *

In the meantime, Yokozawa's trek home had gradually regressed to him dragging his feet like a drunkard. It was night, and he could hardly see a damn thing. Plus, it was really damn irritating to have to wipe his face every minute due to the heavy downpour.

Yokozawa just barely caught the last train home, but he was already drenched by the time he got on. The weight of the rain had heightened profusely once he left his stop, and with no breeze, it felt like he was showering with his clothes on. His jacket was drenched to the point that water was seeping in, so to save himself the weight on his shoulders, he decided to just take it off. Evidently, he wouldn't be dry any time soon, as he still had ways to go before he reached his own apartment. It would probably do him good to call a taxi, but he couldn't muster the motivation to call for one.

And while he truly was dreading his post-breakup sentiments with Kirishima, he found that he didn't regret his actions at all. It haunted him how he didn't feel _any_ regret whatsoever. He was anticipating being overwhelmed with distressing feelings of regret, because he loved him, and he loved her, but he couldn't feel _sorry_ for leaving them. He should've been drowning in regret, but he just _wasn't_. He could only indulge in the all-too-terrible self pity that came with now being all alone. _So damn selfish._

Because regretting cutting his ties with them would mean that he would have preferred to stay with him. All he could think about after leaving Kirishima was how this would be good for them. But now that he was out of the picture, Kirishima would eventually find a fine woman, and Hiyori would gain a mother. There was no way in hell Kirishima would pick anyone who had half-assed feelings for Hiyori. Kirishima wouldn't have to hide their relationship. Hiyori would finally have the mother she never had. Only good things.

' _Yes, this is good for them…'_

Someone had to take the first step in getting them back on track, and who would be the only one willing to let go? This was all for the better… This is all Yokozawa had to tell himself.

So he continued trekking through the night in the pouring rain, mind in a continuous loop. ' _This is all for the better, this is all for the better.'_

The rain didn't seem to be letting up anytime soon. There were so many fucking drops rolling down his face. "It's raining so damn hard today…" he muttered, swiping the water off of his face for the umpteenth time that night.

* * *

 **Chapter 3 : The Wrong Words**

* * *

 _(A/N)_ : There is one more chapter left, and I hope to have it up by this weekend.

Thanks for following, favoriting, and reviewing~

Hopefully more stuff wasn't excluded in the copy/paste again because the word count isn't matching up again... If you spot something amiss (like a sentence looking like it was cut off or an area that just doesn't feel right 'cause it seems like something's missing), feel free to speak up.

* * *

Guest : Thanks for your continued support, and I hope this was up to your standards~


	4. The Wrong Impressions

"I'm sorry, Hiyori. I… Really messed up this time."

"What do you mean, Father? I'm sure you'll work things out with Oniichan. You always do…" Hiyo assured him, the resolve in her voice gradually phasing out.

Kirishima sighed and recomposed himself. "I've done some things that Yokozawa might not be able to forgive me for," he explained as he moved over on the couch to make room for his daughter.

Hiyori took the place next to him, her eyes never leaving him. "Like what?" she asked with a tinge of unwillingness in her voice. Something was telling her that whatever happened between the two wasn't at all her father's fault, which led to the pit in her stomach she was feeling.

"..." Kirishima folded his arms, trying to think of the right words to tell her. Anything he said might tip her off about the relationship that he and Yokozawa had. ' _Had.'_ The realization made him clench down on his teeth.

This action hadn't went unnoticed with Hiyori, who lightly tugged at his sleeve and looked up at him. "Father?" Suddenly, she forgot why she was all worked up in the first place.

This feeling was new to him; usually when Kirishima felt lousy, he was able to mask around his daughter. Sure, he'd mope about and be all-around clumsier, but at the very least he'd been able to maintain a straight face and conversation with her. But that wasn't happening _now_.

The last time he was like this was when Sakura passed… but Hiyori was an infant at the time, so it hardly mattered what kind of face he made as long as he could still care for her.

It was all so frustrating. He didn't want to bring her into this. "He was very good to me… to _us_ , but I suppose I just didn't do my share." He finally spared Hiyori a glance and upon noticing her dismay, offered her a smile. "I've asked him to do many unreasonable things...Yokozawa did his part around here, and he even felt like family, so…" Kirishima paused.

He was aware of how much more upset she got with every new word. Hiyori rarely made the face that she fostered now; degrading her features was a frown that wasn't solely melancholic, but it seemed as if she was aggressively denying what she was hearing now. "That can't be it, Father…" she tried to attest just barely above a whisper.

Kirishima turned his body to hers, resulting in him sitting cross-legged on the couch, and pulled her into a gentle embrace. "Don't think badly of him," he requested in a mumble. The words weren't just means for Hiyori. He then leaned out of the hug but left his arm draped over her shoulder in some half-assed cradle. "He was a very good friend. And to me… he still is."

Hiyori settled her weight for just a split second before pulling away. The action confused Kirishima, as by now she would've been reciprocating the hug. "A good _friend_ to you?" she asked, looking up at him with cynical eyes.

"Yeah…" he replied lamely, giving her some space.

"Father…" Her voice was frail and hardly audible. Hiyori couldn't bring herself to meet her father's concerned gaze. "I made Oniichan angry, didn't I..?"

Kirishima blinked before looking down at her sympathetically. He lightly tasseled her hair. "Now where would you get that idea?" he asked, forcing a chuckle to try and lighten the mood. When his daughter failed to respond, he tried to catch her attention in a low timbre. "... Hiyo?"

"H-He's upset with me, isn't he?" she asked, hesitance causing her voice to tremble in the slightest bit. "Did you break up… b-because of me?"

Kirishima's mouth parted ever-so slightly from the shock. He craned his neck to try and meet her gaze. " _Break up?_ What do you-" The phrase caught him off guard, but once he reasoned that she probably meant this platonically, the tension in his shoulders eased and he began to stroke her back. "Hiyo…"

"I-I didn't mean to!" she pleaded. "I said those horrible things to him, but I didn't mean it, I promise!" She met her father's eyes with her own. "I'm sorry, I-I was just-!" Her voice cut off when a hand weighed down on her shoulder.

Thrown off by the glossiness in her eyes, Kirishima had to take a moment before he came to his senses. "Hiyo, relax," he lulled, rubbing soothing circles with his thumb. There was a gloomy compassion that came with the placid face he shared with her. "I don't know why you'd think you had anything to do with this."

"Don't pretend, Father! You two fought because of what I said, didn't you?"

His hand slid down to caress her arm as he held his gaze with hers. "Hiyo… I promise you that this fight has _nothing_ to do with you," he assured her. "What me and Yokozawa are going through right now... that's just between us."

Hiyori's shoulders started to shake with the inaudible hiccups that escaped her lips. " _B-But..._ "

Kirishima was at a loss. Hiyori had certainly been emotional before, but never to this extent; it seemed that she would be ready to fall into hysterics any moment now. Although he doubted that she never felt this way before, Hiyori had always put up a brave front for him; he had always hoped that she'd lean on him like this, but now that she actually was, he didn't know what to do, and that frustrated him to no end. He pulled her into a soft embrace. "Don't you dare act like this is your fault," he murmured. "He wouldn't like it if you tried to take the blame for this one."

Distantly, Kirishima felt a tug at the bottom of his shirt. While Hiyori didn't reciprocate the hug, she was slowly settling her weight on him. In return, he began to rest his head on hers. While this was certainly a depressing moment, Kirishima couldn't help but feel this tiny bit of relief. He was glad that Hiyori had evidently grown to love Yokozawa as he did, and he was glad that Hiyori was finally relying on him like this.

And admittedly… as terrible as it was to admit it, he liked that he wasn't the only one going through Hell because of this; that his daughter could share his grief and comfort with him like this.

"... You two didn't break up because of what I said?" she asked, her voice cracking.

Kirishima stared vacantly down his daughter's back. "You had nothing to do with it," he murmured as he felt the grip on his shirt lessen and a hand shyly begin to foil around him. "Actually, I didn't even know you and Yokozawa had an argument of your own."

After a pause she shyly asked, "You didn't..?"

Kirishima shook his head against her. "I didn't… So that's why I'm _sure_ it's not your fault."

"How do you know he just didn't tell you about it?" she asked dubiously.

"You're very important to Yokozawa," he promised her, "and every time he's felt like he's done upset you, he'd be restless with worry and fret over how to make it up to you."

"..." Hiyori took in the information with a reluctant nod.

"Actually… this fight Yokozawa and I had began even before I left town," he admitted, his voice becoming grim once again. "I may have crossed the line and, well… embarrassed him in front of an important friend. Well, that wasn't the only thing that I did wrong… There _was_ more. I've been treating him unfairly, and he was patient enough to not bring it up until recently."

"But he still came to pick you up…" Hiyori noted, voice much calmer, but also much more feeble.

"That's just because… he's really that good of a guy," he explained, the wave of distress washing over him once again. "He keeps his promises, even if we argue. Even though we fought before I left, he still spent the weekend with you, so _please_ , don't think badly of him," he requested, his eyesight suddenly felt hazy; he blinked to stop it from getting to that point.

"Are you really sure though…?"

"Trust me, whatever happened between you and Yokozawa was probably nothing to him. Otherwise, he would've mentioned it. He wouldn't ever hold anything over you."

"Really…?"

He nodded. "Y'know… Do you remember that time when he borrowed that apron of yours? Well, that picture you sent me… I flashed it around the whole editing floor," he fondly recounted with a bitter-sweet chuckle. "That really set him off… He was pissed at _me_ for days, but he didn't feel anything towards _you_. So please stop doubting yourself." Kirishima felt just the slightest bit more at ease at the sound of an amused sigh. "But what did you say to him that had you like this anyway?"

Kirishima briefly regretted bringing up the topic upon hearing a new wave of affliction in Hiyori's tone. "I-I called him the worst, a-and said I hated him…"

Kirishima couldn't stop a snicker from escaping his lips.

Hiyori immediately pulled back and looked up at him fiercely, her tone remaining meager. "I'm serious…"

Kirishima juggled his emotions; he still felt horrible about his current circumstances, yet he couldn't stop the mirth from tugging at the corner of his lips. Upon the fond gaze, Hiyori stilled. "It's nothing you haven't said before. If anything, I'm sure he got a kick out of it."

"..." Although clearly still uncertain, Hiyori nodded her understanding. "Can I still apologize?"

Kirishima smiled warmly at his daughter's sentiments. "Not now," he answered as he patted her shoulder and too rested his weight against the couch's backing. ' _He'll want his space from us, at least for now…'_ was his reasoning. Yokozawa was undoubtedly feeling lousy himself, and it wouldn't do either of them good to just shove that fact in his face. "Just give it some time, okay?"

"Okay…"

"And who knows? Maybe I'll be able to get him to forgive me, _somehow…_ "

* * *

Yokozawa mentally cursed himself out.

He thought he'd been clever, finally learning from the past and not getting drunk on his ass the moment things went wrong. Yet, in the heat of a moment he'd walked home in weather just short of a typhoon.

So although he wasn't groggy from a prior night's inebriation, he still fostered a killer headache. ' _This is the worst…'_

Spent both physically and mentally, he could hardly concentrate on the work in front of him. The only thing keeping him going was his own scolding: if he didn't get the work done now, it'd just build up later.

Lost in his thoughts, he only notice someone standing over him when he noticed Henmi staring past him.

"Here you are, Yokozawa-san…" began Katou, his voice gradually dying out as eyes he laid eyes on Yokozawa..

"Ah…" Yokozawa reached for the papers in his hand and looked over the title. In his hands were the proposal for a fair regarding the newest volume release of Za Kan that went hand in hand with the release of the movie. "It's about time."

"Hey, Yokozawa-san? Are you okay?" he asked, worriedly looking down on the man.

"Why does everyone keep asking that?" Yokozawa muttered irately.

"You look a little pale…"

"Everyone's been concerned, but Yokozawa-san keeps insisting that he's alright," pitched in Henmi.

Yokozawa pursed his lips in mild agitation. "I'm doing just fine, _thank you_ ," he returned harshly as he turned back to his desk, neatly setting the papers aside to look at as soon as he was done with his prior engagement.

"... Well in any case, I hope that you'll feel better," offered Katou as he began to take his leave. "Is there anything you'd like to pass on to Kirishima-san?"

"Wha-Why the Hell would I have anything to pass on to him?!" snapped Yokozawa, sinking into his seat when he realized his mannerisms. "Ah, excuse me…"

Katou blinked awkwardly before smiling sympathetically. "It's alright, there was no reason in particular. I just thought because… well, he usually comes down here himself."

"Did he... say anything?"

"No, not really," replied Katou as he continued taking his leave. "If you're feeling unwell, please take it easy Yokozawa-san," he chided with concern. "It won't be good for anyone if you fall ill."

"Yeah, yeah. Unfortunately there's no rest for the weary," he replied lazily, resting his head against his propped-up arm.

From the corner of his eye, he saw Henmi and Katou exchange a brief look of concern before going about their own business. Deciding not to start any unnecessary tensions, he decided to leave it at that, only venting out his frustration by clenching his fist.

Finally letting himself acknowledge that he was feeling far from well, he began to list off what he had to do for the day. ' _I'll make an early night out of it…'_ he decided begrudgingly. And then realizing that he had a planning meeting for the newest Za Kan volume in lieu of the fair, he clenched his teeth and impatiently seized the proposal papers, crumpling its fine edges. "Damn it…"

* * *

"We on the order processing side would like a first printing of 350,000 copies."

"What the Hell? Is your head in the clouds?! This author is a best-seller and this serialization is the most popular in the magazine! It would be foolish to do such a measly amount!"

" _Measly?!_ 350 alone is-!"

"450,000!" Yokozawa countered. "Not only does it have a secure popularity, but it's being released at the same time as the movie! There's no better time than now!"

"That may be true, but-!"

"To think that you guys would even _think_ of anything less than 400,000 is simply idiotic!"

The inventory lady flinched at the uncalled for crudity and grit her teeth before retorting in a tone much louder than the one used to insult her. "And what the Hell are we going to do with all of the damn extra copies if the movie tanks, huh?!"

"Well, we have our word from both inventory and sales," Isaka cut in cheerfully, giving a slap to the stack of papers in his face. "I just finished reading this proposal," he declared a bit too proudly for someone who only started looking over the content once the meeting started, "and I'd say why not compromise with 400,000?"

"Isaka-san, put a little more thought into the things you say," Yokozawa grumbled.

Isaka laughed merrily at the jab. Most superiors wouldn't let a subordinate get away with that kind of quip. "Looks like the wild bear has a bit more bite in him than usual today~" he trilled, dreamily resting his head in his two hands.

"Isaka-san, I _really_ wish that you'd stop encouraging people to call me that…"

"But I wasn't serious about that number at all. Of course, not without the Editor-in-Chief's input himself," he explained, looking over at the man that sat across from Yokozawa in the room, "but it looks like someone's off of his game today."

"..." Yokozawa couldn't bring himself to look at the man so he instead looked at Ijuuin's sub-editor seated next to him. He was able to keep a poker face, but his hands under the table were no less clammy. He could see the man from the corner of his eye he could've sworn that just a second ago he was looking at him. Holy hell, he better not have been looking under the table...

It seemed that what Isaka said was true however. Kirishima didn't look particularly down, but he was lacking his usual moxie. "Editing proposes 520,000 copies."

"WHAT?!" " _Ah~_ " "..."

"Are you _crazy?!_ " screeched the inventory lady. "That's crossing the line, even for a series as celebrated as Za-Kan!"

' _He's looking at me…'_ Yokozawa noted anxiously, refusing to meet his gaze.

"Even so," began Shizuku, taking the reigns from Kirishima, "we have confidence in this particular volume, not only because of Yokozawa-san's reasonings, but because of a poster with an autograph that's being printed within the book."

"Like a little gimmick is going to attract that more people!" mocked the inventory representative while amusingly slapping the table.

"These ' _little gimmicks'_ end up reselling for three times their worth in the long run!" argued Yokozawa. He wavered a bit before continuing. ' _I still feel his gaze on me…'_ "If we have time to bat our eyes and watch the copies fly away into a reseller's pockets, we should get off of our asses and pocket that profit for _ourselves_. 450!"

"500."

"400, and no more than that!"

"Hm… Meet around the average at 460?"

"Stop playing games!" "As if." "Like Hell!"

Despite the chastising, Isaka chortled gaudily, clearly enjoying himself.

"Editing is putting its foot down at 500," Kirishima interrupted. "It should be no problem for a pro to sell them all off, right?"

' _Stop looking me…'_ Yokozawa nervously looked back down at the table and scowled.

Kirishima's indirect jab at sales was much more forgiving than what it would usually be; usually Kirishima would hit him with something like, " _The book is quality stuff, so if we can't pull it off, that's all on Sales for not properly doing their job, right?"_

Yokozawa crossed his arms and looked Isaka's way. "Even so, there's a limit to this kind of market! 480, no more!" Even with his gaze elsewhere, he could see just Kirishima in the corner of his eye, following him. ' _Why are you still looking this way?! Practice some damn tact...'_

"You jackasses are shooting way too high! You're putting too much faith in gimmicks! 420. We won't be signing on if you're planning any more!"

"... We'll meet Sales' proposal of 480," affirmed Shizuku, looking over at Isaka for approval.

"Is that so?"

"What the Hell?! Did you not just hear a word I said?!"

' _He's still looking…'_ Yokozawa briefly looked down at the files before him in an attempt to get Kirishima to find something else to stare at.

"Quite frankly, I myself think that 480 is high for any manga, popular or not. But if two departments agree on numbers this early in the game, their intuition might be onto something. I propose 470," commented Isaka, already stuffing the proposal papers in a briefcase.  
Yokozawa looked up and still felt Kirishima looking his way. ' _Cut it out already!'_

The inventory representative let out an exasperated sigh. There was no winning against the president of the company himself, after all. "470 it is then…"

"Good work!" sang Isaka, who had already filed away most of his belongings.

And with a collective sigh, the room was filled with shuffling papers as everyone prepared to take their leave.

After finishing up, Yokozawa almost sat down by habit. By now, the man across from him would've requested, " _Yokozawa, a word if I may?"_ and the two would have waited until the room emptied out… "-!" And without even thinking about it, Yokozawa looked up at just the man he was thinking of, and their eyes met.

Kirishima, with an elbow propped on the table and a fist to rest his head on, was staring at him long and hard, and at the folly of accidentally making eye contact, Yokozawa's brows knit before he snapped his gaze away.

' _What the hell was that look?'_ he belligerently mulled over to himself.

The face that Kirishima held this whole meeting had been the same… perturbed and oddly analytic. Anyone who didn't know him on a personal level wouldn't be able to figure out just what exactly he was feeling, but it was obvious enough that something had changed his mood for the worse. Yokozawa himself was a bit ashamed to not know himself what was on Kirishima's mind. He didn't seem particularly depressed, or angry, so then _what was it?_

' _He's still looking at me…'_ He no longer had view of the man anywhere in his sight, but he could still feel eyes boring holes into his back, just hoping for another glance his way. Yokozawa began to hastily take his leave, brushing past the inventory representative whose only response was a scoff.

"Kirishima-san, a word?"

Yokozawa froze and fought the urge to look back.

"Of course, Isaka-san… Shizuku, go on back without me."

"Okay."

And feeling that he may have dwelled for too long, Yokozawa left the room before listening to anything else.

* * *

Although he was able to get all of his work done the day prior, Yokozawa almost practically collapsed two steps into his own apartment. So after forcing himself to at least take care of his damn cat, Yokozawa slinked into bed without bothering to change clothes or anything else that was a part of his daily routine.

He'd hoped that a good night's sleep would've helped the fever go down, but that didn't seem to do the trick either. A cycle of throbs pulsed through his head as his alarm went off, and barely managing to suppress a groan of discomfort, Yokozawa groped around for his phone with his eyes shut.

He flipped the phone open and pressed the button to turn it off, then went still for a few moments more. After a little tossing and turning, Yokozawa became more aware of his situation, and the unbearable heat he was surrounded by.

It took about five more minutes for Yokozawa to finally that he just wouldn't be able to be productive in this state. He flipped open his phone again, squinting with the bright light so close to his eyes in the still rather dark bedroom. He searched around his address book for his boss, and held the phone as far away as he possibly could while still being able to hear the other line.

He must've sounded terrible, for his boss had guessed his reason for calling before Yokozawa even had a chance to explain himself. " _You used to strike me as the kind of guy who'd never get sick, but I suppose it's been happening often enough lately, hasn't it? Well, don't be getting old before your superiors! Anyway, take off as much time as you need. You've been giving it your all this past month, so you've deserved it."_

And as soon as that call was done and over with, Yokozawa was completely sapped of his energy and his limbs went limp like ragdolls. He should probably take medicine, or eat something since he'd skipped dinner in favor of sleeping, or even take his temperature, but he was out like a light the second he tried to get out of bed.

He distantly recalled that he should feed Sorata, but had settled with a mental apology and a pang of guilt as he drifted back to sleep. Try as hard as he could, his eyelids too heavy to lift. Yokozawa made a mental note… to call Takano later. This fever was the worst he's ever had, and he could probably count the number of times he'd fallen ill on one hand. He was in no position to take care of a cat.

Shifting in his comforter to try and find cool spots that were yet to be diffused with his body heat, Yokozawa chided himself for being so stubborn and not taking everyone's concern seriously.

" _I feel like crap…_ "

And even in his sleep he felt as if his head was splitting; slumbering didn't bring him any peace of mind.

* * *

At some point in the late afternoon, Yokozawa awoke due to his fervent thirst.

Although drenched in his own sweat, his throat was parched. If it was up to him, he would rather still be asleep. There was no way in hell that he'd be able to sleep without quenching his thirst, so he bitterly crawled out of his bed, almost toppling backwards upon taking a first step, a wave of dizziness robbing him of his train of thought.  
He was in such a trance that somehow he ended up in the kitchen, leaning against the counter with no recollection of even leaving his bedroom. After blinking in succession, he was at least relieved to see Sorata, devouring the contents of his food bowl, by his feet.

' _At least I was able to do something while feeling like this…'_ he thought to himself, about to leave the kitchen but then stopping himself once he was reminded of why he was there in the first place. Lazily grabbing the nearest glass and impatiently filling it with water from the tap, Yokozawa gulped down the hardly refreshing drink before hobbling his way back to the bedroom.

Somehow he managed to change his clothes, leaving his prior wear sprawled on the floor, and crawled back under the sheets. Taking out his cellphone, he noticed that he already had a text message from Takano from a few hours ago.. " _I heard that you looked like the dead yesterday."_

"..." Well, that was his own way of showing concern. Deciding to cut straight to the point, he asked Takano to come pick up Sorata whenever, choosing to exclude the details about his fever.

As soon as he put the phone down and to try and find a comfortable enough position, the phone beeped with a new notification. The furrow between Yokozawa's brows only scrunched up more after reading the content of his new text. " _Can't. There's a typhoon over here so there's no getting home."_

Yokozawa cursed under his breath. "That's right… He went to some onsen."

A follow up was immediately sent afterwards. " _Are you going to be okay?"_

Yokozawa was admittedly caught off-guard by the straightforwardness of Takano's worry, and after sending back a simple "Yeah," he attempted to fall back asleep. Minutes later as he was actually about to lose himself in slumber, he received a barrage of texts that kept going of, one after the other. "Oh, _fuck off…_ " he muttered in a matter atypical of himself, and switched off his phone.

* * *

It must've been pretty late, since the room was almost completely pitch black by the time Yokozawa was able to wake up yet again. His head felt relaxingly cool, so he allowed himself a few moments to linger in place.

By his hand he felt a warmth, and so he brought up his hand to pet his bedside companion. But something felt odd about the Sorata's fur…

"-!" Yokozawa shot up, ignoring the impairing fatigue that came with his sudden movement and the cooling pad that just fell onto his lap.

There at his side was was a girl slouched on the floor who was resting face-down on the edge of his bed. She was clearly asleep, breathing tranquil.

And suddenly Yokozawa felt a different kind of sickness. "Hiyo…"

* * *

 **Chapter 4 : The Wrong Impressions**

* * *

 _(Shameless advertizing)_ : If you're reading this story at all, you're obviously a fan of trifecta~ Y **okozawa and Kirishima's birthdays are coming up** , so to commemorate this, there is **a week long celebration for trifecta** on tumblr called _**Trifiesta**_! If you want to contribute or just look at whatever everyone else has, go to Trifiesta on tumblr for details!

Now that that's over…

 _(A/N)_ : Ahaha… Ha… Well.

First thing's first :  
1) Word count isn't matching up again. Please speak up if something seems amiss ='D  
2) Sorry, edited this on, like. No sleep. Always a terrible idea, but I wanted this published already so. Chapter is subject to _small_ changes, but not major one worth rerading. If a major change does occur, a warning will be up at the start of next chater.

I really am sorry it took so long. Life happened, then writer's block happened, then it turned out that life wasn't done screwing me over yet so that happened again, and then came the "no-more motivation" phase for writing this story.

Unfortunately, I realized that when writing this chapter, I'd rather it have gone a different direction. I would've liked it if they had more time apart post-breakup, but I didn't set up the story for that. Oh well. But heey, an extra chapter~ with definitely a much shorter wait than this chapter~

I'm even considering writing an epilogue, from a different character's POV.

I feel like I have to say this in advance, so Hiyo has said she hates Yokozawa before, but this was in a comedic scene so. Meh.

I'm also sorry if everything about this chapter seemed forced… I wasn't too sure about it, but I already felt bad for holding this chapter hostage for a while. Also, if it seems like Hiyori and Kirishima just dodged an important conversation… That's because they did. _Shhhh, lack of communication is a main staple to SiH, I'm doing the series justice_ ┴┬┴┬┴┤‿¬) ├┬┴┬┴

* * *

Also, as of now, I will actually be using that fanfiction blog on tumblr that was inactive until this day LOL. I'll use it to post concept art of whatever fanfics I have, ask for opinions on how you think the story should go from there, and I have one story in mind that I'd like to write light-novel esque with illustrations (Mind you they're kind of terrible because my art is. Kinda' terrible.), so if that interests you, come on and drop by~ at :

Guilty-Fanfiction

(To my one follower who didn't stop following me even though I literally have no content on there : You're the real MVP. You know who you are ;P)

* * *

 _(Special responses)_

 **Whoever recommended this story on that tumblr blog that recommends JR and SiH stories** : I was so flattered to see that show up on my dash. I'm glad to know that someone liked it enough to submit. Whoever you are, thanks~ You really made my day that time~ Back in March. (uuughfsdhjkhsdfjk) This chapter's dedicated to you~

 **That one anon that vent-screamed to incorrectjrandsih on tumblr** : I'm really sorry that my lack of updates ruined your experience on ffn. I hope that despite this, you've read some other fanfic on here by now since there are a lot less cruddy authors who actually skip to an update schedule lolol. But hey, this story will be resolved soon enough ='D I hope you're still reading this~

 **Shoutout to whoever I may be missing** : Sorry, it's been 3 months, so I feel like I'm forgetting something important. But I'm pretty sure there's a "thank you" involved, so thank you~ (If I remember you'll be mentioned in the next chapter, sorry again)

* * *

 _(Guest review responses)_

 **deana** : Yep, a misunderstanding ='D It's good to know I did well enough with the suspense. And no, thank _you_ for reading it~

 **Guest from March 5** : The reason why Hiyo's reaction didn't match up was more because of the heat of the moment. She is still a kid after all, but I see why that might've been confusing. I'll try and work on making them flow together better in the future, so maybe then there'll be more consistency? As for Yokozawa blowing up like that… Yeah, you may be right. That may have been over the top. Thank you very much for your constructive criticism~ It really helps me for writing in the future

 **marta** : Thank you so much~ It really means a lot to me to see that you like it so much! But I'm terribly sorry that this update was… long. ='D But your English is fine, so don't worry. I guess it did seem like I dropped it, huh? I'm sorry that that happened D= I hope the wait wasn't too bad… (even though I know it was, so sorry again) Again, thanks for reading and dropping a review~

 **The first guest from March 7** : Thank you very much~ Love that you love it~

 **The second guest from March 7** : I hope I didn't take too long with this one .' (Though let's be real, I did). I hope this was as good as the others, though imo I thought it could've been better. But thanks for reading and leaving your thoughts~

 **maria** : Sorry, I tried to put your review into google translate and literally nothing got translated so I have no idea what you said D= But thank you for leaving a review anyway~ (I hope to one day know what it says…)

 **Guest from April 3** : A main staple of SiH is a lack of communication, so what is this " _just talk to each others!"_ thing you speak of? ┴┬┴┬┴┤‿¬) ├┬┴┬┴ Jokes aside, I'll be sure to give them a happy ending so don't worry ;P And thank _you_ for the review! I like seeing that people enjoy it.

 **chika-chin** : Thank you very much~ Reviews like these really lift my spirits up, so thanks for putting in the time to drop one by~ And no chika-chin, _you're_ amazing ┴┬┴┬┴┤‿¬) ├┬┴┬┴

 **anonimous** : The reason I was able to update the other fic and not this one was because I happened to write a lot of it while waiting in an airport for my flights. I wasn't able to write for this one because I find writing and going back to constantly reference on a phone is a bit tedious. But thank you for the encouraging words about my story~ Except now, it's 1-2 chapters left hehe. That's not so bad ='D considering that if it went the route that I wanted it to go as of last chapter, it might've been 2-3 more. Ha. Haha. And I'd never leave my ultimate OTP broken up, trust me ┴┬┴┬┴┤‿¬) ├┬┴┬┴ I didn't leave it, more so life just happens to be a sadist when it comes to I~  
And not gonna lie.  
Death by sugar suffocation sounds pretty sweet to me ┴┬┴┬┴┤‿¬) ├┬┴┬┴┴┬┴┬┴┤‿¬) ├┬┴┬┴┴┬┴┬┴┤‿¬) ├┬┴┬┴  
(Pun intended? ┴┬┴┬┴┤‿¬) ├┬┴┬┴)  
The next updates will be faster, so thanks again for showing an interest in my story~ And thank you for apologizing for the English and not the death threat (jkjk lol, but your English is fine tbh, don't apologize for that)

 **Guest from May 22** : I'm gonna go ahead and copy/paste what I told anonimous instead of just rephrasing the explanation. "The reason I was able to update the other fic and not this one was because I happened to write a lot of it while waiting in an airport for my flights. I wasn't able to write for this one because I find writing and going back to constantly reference on a phone is a bit tedious. [...] I didn't leave it, more so life just happens to be a sadist when it comes to I~" I also don't feel like I'm only allowed one story at a time. I have tons of ideas that I want to write before I ever lose interest, but trust me, if I abandoned this story, I would've given everyone a fair warning.  
I'll definitely get the next update out faster, so thank you for having such an interest in my story~

 **AUTHOR** : I JUST DID SURPRISE WOOH~ ┴┬┴┬┴┤‿¬) ├┬┴┬┴┴┬┴┬┴┤‿¬) ├┬┴┬┴┴┬┴┬┴┤‿¬) ├┬┴┬┴


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